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

This matter concerned an application for Australian citizenship by conferral by Mr. Sharifi, an Afghan national, which was refused by the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs. The refusal was based on the delegate's dissatisfaction that Mr. Sharifi met the good character requirement under section 21(2)(h) of the *Australian Citizenship Act 2007* (Cth), following his conviction for common assault in 2019. Mr. Sharifi sought review of this decision before the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether Mr. Sharifi was of "good character" at the time of the Tribunal's decision, as required for citizenship by conferral. This involved interpreting the meaning of "good character" in the context of citizenship applications and assessing whether Mr. Sharifi's past conduct, specifically his conviction for common assault and other police interactions, was outweighed by evidence of rehabilitation and positive contributions.

The Tribunal considered the seriousness of domestic violence, noting that it is fundamentally inconsistent with the expected standard of behaviour in the Australian community and generally weighs heavily against a finding of good character. While acknowledging Mr. Sharifi's remorse, his guilty plea, completion of an intervention program, and evidence of positive changes in his behaviour and relationships, the Tribunal found that numerous police records, even if not all tested in court, indicated a pattern of behaviour that prevented it from being positively satisfied of his good character at that time. Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the delegate's decision to refuse the application.