Komal (Migration)

The applicant, Komal, sought judicial review of a decision by the Migration Review Tribunal (MRT) that affirmed the refusal of her Skilled (Provisional) (Class VC) visa, subclass 485 (Temporary Graduate) visa. The primary dispute concerned whether the MRT had adequately considered the applicant's character, particularly in light of a criminal history statement and an Australian Federal Police (AFP) national police certificate provided to the Tribunal.

The central legal issue before the Federal Court was whether the MRT had made a valid decision in accordance with the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth) and the *Migration Regulations 1994* (Cth). Specifically, the Court was required to determine if the MRT had failed to consider relevant information or had made a decision without a hearing that was necessary in the circumstances, thereby breaching procedural fairness.

The Court found that the MRT had erred by making a decision without affording the applicant a hearing, despite the presence of information in the AFP national police certificate that indicated "no disclosable court outcomes." The Court reasoned that this statement, while seemingly straightforward, did not necessarily preclude the existence of other relevant character information that might have warranted further inquiry or a hearing. Consequently, the MRT's decision was vitiated by a failure to provide procedural fairness. The Court therefore remitted the matter back to the MRT for reconsideration.