Mundele and Minister for Home Affairs (Migration)

This matter concerned an application by the Applicant, Mundele, for the revocation of a mandatory visa cancellation decision made by the Minister for Home Affairs. The Applicant did not pass the character test due to being sentenced to three years imprisonment. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) was required to determine whether there was "another reason" to revoke the cancellation, applying Ministerial Direction 79.

The central legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the Applicant had established "another reason" for the mandatory visa cancellation to be revoked, as contemplated by section 501CA(4)(b)(i) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth). This required the Tribunal to consider the factors outlined in Part C of Ministerial Direction 79, particularly the primary consideration of protecting the Australian community. The Tribunal had to assess the nature and seriousness of the Applicant's conduct, the risk of future offending, and other relevant factors as set out in the Direction.

The Tribunal reasoned that while the Applicant's offences, which involved fraudulent dealings with over $500,000 through the preparation and facilitation of fraudulent identity documents and bank accounts, were serious and not victimless, they were not violent or directed at vulnerable individuals. The Tribunal noted the Applicant had no criminal record in New Zealand and had committed only two offences in Australia arising from a single criminal enterprise. Despite these mitigating factors, the Tribunal found that the Applicant had not demonstrated "another reason" sufficient to warrant the revocation of the mandatory visa cancellation. The Tribunal affirmed the decision under review.