I have had a number of clients approach me after having their application for citizenship by conferral refused. Citizenship refusals most commonly occur when the applicant cannot satisfy the Minister for Immigration of their identity or cannot establish that they are of good character. Unsuccessful applicants for citizenship can apply to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal for review of the decision to refuse them citizenship.

The issue of identity most commonly arises in citizenship applications made by refugees and protection visa holders. Often during the protection visa process, the Minister will accept a person’s claimed identity at face value. However, the Minister take a much more stringent approach when it comes to citizenship.

The Minister’s policy on identity, for citizenship purposes, provides that ‘[a] person’s identity is not a fixed concept, it is highly dependent on context. It is a combination of characteristics or attributes that allow a person to be uniquely distinguished from others within a specific context.’ The Minister assesses identity based on the “3 pillars of identity”, biometrics, documents and life story.

Refugees and protection visa holders often have difficulty providing verifiable biometrics and genuine documents. This makes the life story component of their identity particularly important. The Minister will refer to country information and closely scrutinise a person’s claims as to their identity. This is where legal advice and thorough preparation becomes crucial and is often the difference between satisfying the Minister or Tribunal as to identity and not.

The issue of good character most commonly arises when an applicant has a criminal history or has deceived the Minister in some way, such as providing false answers on a visa application or bogus documents. Character is not a straightforward matter, just because a person has a criminal history does not mean they are not of good character. Conversely, the absence of a criminal history does not mean a person is automatically of good character.

In assessing whether a person is of good character, the Minister is not, or should not be, concerned with blemishes or weaknesses of character. Rather, the Minister is required to assess the enduring moral qualities of a person and whether any proved deficiencies in the those qualities are sufficient to deny the person citizenship. This is where legal advice and thorough preparation becomes crucial and is often the difference between satisfying the Minister or Tribunal as to a person’s good character and not.

If you are thinking about applying for citizenship, have applied for citizenship or have had your citizenship application refused, please get in contact with us for an obligation free phone call.