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

This matter concerned an application for review by THDX of a decision by the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs to revoke his Australian citizenship. The Minister's decision was based on two grounds: that THDX had been convicted of a serious offence, and that it was contrary to the public interest for him to remain an Australian citizen. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal was required to consider whether the Minister's discretion to revoke citizenship was enlivened and, if so, whether it should be exercised.

The primary legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the discretion to revoke citizenship under section 34(2) of the relevant Act was enlivened by THDX's conviction for a serious offence, and if so, whether it was contrary to the public interest for him to remain an Australian citizen. The Tribunal also considered whether the Minister's delegate was precluded from granting citizenship under section 24(6) of the Act due to pending proceedings at the time of the application's approval, although this was not the central focus of the review. The Tribunal determined that it was not appropriate to speculate on hypothetical scenarios, such as the potential cancellation of THDX's ex-citizen visa or his prospects of obtaining another visa.

The Tribunal found that THDX had indeed been convicted of a serious offence as defined by the Act, thereby enlivening the discretion under section 34(2). In considering whether it was contrary to the public interest for THDX to remain a citizen, the Tribunal took into account the nature of his offence, which involved engaging in online communications with individuals he believed to be minors, despite his claims of it being a "fantasy world" and his subsequent remorse. The Tribunal concluded that the discretion to revoke citizenship should be exercised in this case.

Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the Minister's decision of 14 September 2020 to revoke THDX's Australian citizenship.