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

This matter concerned an application for Australian citizenship by conferral made by Ms Rong. The dispute arose when the Department of Home Affairs considered cancelling the approval of Ms Rong's citizenship, alleging that she had provided fraudulent documents in support of a prior visa application. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) was required to determine whether Ms Rong met the character requirements for Australian citizenship.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether Ms Rong possessed the requisite "good character" for Australian citizenship, given the alleged provision of fraudulent documents in her 2014 visa application. This involved assessing whether Ms Rong had been personally involved in submitting false or misleading information to the Department, which is considered a fundamental breach of the principles of truthfulness and honesty in dealings with the Australian Government.

The Tribunal found that Ms Rong's explanation for the submission of fraudulent documents, attributing it to a migration agent named Andrew Liu, was not compelling and lacked corroborating evidence. The Tribunal noted the absence of any record of Mr Liu acting on Ms Rong's behalf, the lack of notification to the Department as required by law, and the absence of written records of their interactions or payment. Furthermore, the Tribunal found that the email address used to submit the fraudulent documents was the same as that recorded on Ms Rong's tenancy agreement with Mr Zhang, undermining her denial of its use. Consequently, the Tribunal was satisfied that Ms Rong was personally involved in providing fraudulent documents. Applying the principles that an applicant of good character must respect the law and not practise deception or fraud, and that the provision of false information is viewed seriously in migration and citizenship matters, the Tribunal concluded that Ms Rong did not meet the definition of "good character."

The Tribunal affirmed the decision of the delegate of the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs, dated 2 January 2020, to cancel the approval of Ms Rong's citizenship.