Lucas and Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs (Migration)

This case concerned an application for the revocation of a mandatory cancellation of a Class TY Subclass 444 Special Category Temporary visa. The applicant, Mr Lucas, did not pass the character test due to his criminal conduct. The primary issue before the Tribunal was whether there was "another reason" to revoke the mandatory cancellation decision, considering Ministerial Direction No. 90. The applicant's criminal conduct involved breaches of domestic violence orders.

The legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the applicant's personal circumstances, including his family ties in Australia and his desire to be a good father to his daughter, constituted sufficient "other reason" to revoke the mandatory visa cancellation. The Tribunal was required to assess these circumstances against the framework provided by Ministerial Direction No. 90, particularly concerning the expectations of the Australian community regarding serious criminal conduct.

The Tribunal reasoned that while the best interests of the applicant's daughter weighed slightly in favour of revocation, this was outweighed by the expectations of the Australian community. The Direction stipulated that the community expects non-citizens to obey Australian laws and that visas may be cancelled for serious character concerns, including acts of family violence. The Tribunal noted that it was not for it to independently assess community expectations but to be guided by the Government's views as articulated in the Direction. Given the applicant's conduct, the Tribunal concluded that it could not exercise the discretion to revoke the cancellation.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision under review, meaning the mandatory cancellation of the applicant's visa was not revoked.