Mate and Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs (Migration)

This matter concerned a review of a mandatory visa cancellation decision made under section 501CA(4) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth). The applicant, Mate, sought to have the cancellation decision revoked. The decision-maker considered the primary considerations outlined in Ministerial Direction No. 99, which include the protection of the Australian community, the strength, nature, and duration of ties to Australia, the best interests of minor children in Australia, and the expectations of the Australian community, as well as the extent of impediments if removed.

The legal issues before the Tribunal were whether there was "another reason" why the mandatory visa cancellation decision should be revoked, and if so, to apply the considerations set out in Ministerial Direction No. 99 to determine the outcome. This involved assessing the seriousness of the applicant's past conduct, the risk to the Australian community, the applicant's connections to Australia, the impact on any minor children, community expectations, and the practical difficulties of removal.

The Tribunal found that while the protection of the Australian community and community expectations weighed against revocation due to the applicant's criminal history, which included driving offences, criminal infringement notices, and dishonesty offences, other factors favoured revocation. Specifically, the strength of the applicant's ties to Australia, the best interests of his minor children, and the extent of impediments to his removal were considered to weigh in favour of revocation. On balance, the Tribunal determined that the considerations favouring revocation outweighed those against it.

Consequently, the Tribunal set aside the mandatory visa cancellation decision and substituted a decision that there was another reason why the cancellation should be revoked under section 501CA(4) of the Act.