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

This matter concerned an application for Australian citizenship by conferral made by a national of the United Kingdom. The applicant's application had been refused by the delegate of the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs. The applicant sought review of this decision before the Tribunal, contending that the delegate erred in finding him not to be of good character.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether it was satisfied that the applicant was of good character for the purposes of section 21(2)(h) of the *Citizenship Act 1948* (Cth) at the time of the Tribunal's decision. This required the Tribunal to reach an affirmative belief that the applicant possessed good character. The Tribunal was required to consider the applicant's criminal history, including a conviction for aggravated assault occasioning bodily harm in Western Australia in 2017, and prior offending in the United Kingdom.

The Tribunal considered the applicant's criminal history in both the UK and Australia, including the conviction for assault occasioning bodily harm. The Tribunal applied the principle that a conviction is strong prima facie evidence of the facts upon which it is based, placing a heavy onus on the applicant to demonstrate why it should not be accepted. The applicant argued that he was acting in self-defence during the assault incident. However, the Tribunal was not satisfied that the applicant had discharged the onus to show why the conviction and sentence should not be taken as evidence of a lack of good character. The Tribunal noted that the applicant had failed to make a complete declaration of his criminal history in his citizenship application.

The Tribunal affirmed the delegate's decision to refuse the applicant's application for Australian citizenship by conferral. The Tribunal noted that a failure to satisfy the good character requirement was not immutable and that the applicant could apply again in the future, demonstrating positive attributes over time.