Long and Minister for Immigration and Border Protection (Citizenship)

This matter concerned an application by Mr Peov Long for Australian citizenship by conferral, which had been refused by a delegate of the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection. The applicant sought review of this decision before the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. The refusal was based on the applicant not satisfying the good character requirement under paragraph 21(2)(h) of the *Australian Citizenship Act 2007* (Cth).

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the applicant was of good character at the time of the Minister's delegate's decision. This involved considering the applicant's history, including his use of a false passport upon arrival in Australia, convictions for offences involving imposition upon a public authority and furnishing false documents, unpaid legal costs, multiple drink-driving offences, driving whilst disqualified, and non-compliance with child support obligations, as well as a domestic violence protection order made against him.

The Tribunal applied the principle that the standard of proof for good character is on the balance of probabilities. It considered the ordinary meaning of "good character" as referring to a person's enduring moral qualities, rather than their reputation or standing in the community. The Tribunal noted that while a person with a criminal history may still be of good character if they have reformed, the applicant's conduct, including consistently false statements to immigration authorities, repeated traffic offences without apparent rehabilitation, and non-compliance with child support obligations, led to an adverse conclusion regarding his character.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision of the Minister's delegate, finding that the applicant was not of good character at the time of the delegate's decision or at the time of the Tribunal's own decision.