Omara and Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs (Citizenship)

This matter concerned an application for Australian citizenship by Mr Omara, who was born in Egypt in 1981 and arrived in Australia in 2007. The Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs opposed the application. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal was tasked with determining whether Mr Omara satisfied the good character requirement under paragraph 21(2)(h) of the *Australian Citizenship Act 2007* (Cth).

The central legal issue before the Tribunal was whether it could be positively satisfied that the applicant was of "good character" for the purposes of the Act. This required the Tribunal to consider the applicant's criminal history, including charges of attempted stalking and intimidation with intent to cause fear of harm, and using a carriage service to menace, harass, or offend. The Tribunal also had to assess the applicant's failure to disclose these convictions on his citizenship application, where he had answered "no" to a question about prior convictions.

The Tribunal considered the applicant's oral evidence, where he disputed the police facts relating to his offending behaviour towards his previous partner, describing it as a "misunderstanding" and stating he was "only trying to get back to her." He also provided several explanations for failing to disclose his criminal record on his application, including that he did not read the questions properly, answered by accident, and believed the Australian Government already possessed the information. He cited English not being his first language and a lack of understanding of the consequences of incorrect form completion. The applicant highlighted that his convictions occurred five years prior and that he had an otherwise unblemished record, supported by character references. The Tribunal noted that citizenship is a significant privilege requiring a positive belief in the applicant's good character, which involves a holistic assessment of behaviour over an enduring period. The Tribunal affirmed the decision under review.