Question 1 - Hamid (25 marks)

Hamid is a 36-year-old Hazara refugee who was born in Ghazni Province, Afghanistan. When Hamid was six, his father died from tuberculosis (TB) while the family was living in a refugee camp in Quetta, Pakistan. Following his father's death, Hamid, his mother Fatima, and his younger sister Laila struggled to survive in the camp's harsh conditions.

In 1998, Hamid and his mother were granted a Class XB, Subclass 200 Refugee visa and resettled in Australia. Due to administrative issues and the chaos of displacement, they believed Laila had died during an outbreak of disease in the camp shortly before their departure. Heartbroken, Fatima and Hamid rebuilt their lives in Brisbane, assuming they had lost all contact with their extended family. Six years ago, however, Fatima received a letter from Pakistan through a community organisation confirming that Laila had survived. Laila is now an adult living in a refugee camp in Islamabad and has been writing regularly to her mother and brother. Hamid has since made several attempts to secure her resettlement in Australia, but has had no luck.

Hamid completed school in Australia and later earned a Bachelor of Biomedical Science and a Master of Laboratory Medicine. He currently works as a senior laboratory scientist at a private pathology company. He is known within the local Hazara community as a hardworking and compassionate person, frequently volunteering to assist new arrivals with employment and translation support. Around 2020, Hamid sought legal assistance to help prepare a humanitarian visa application for Laila. A private migration lawyer quoted $25,000 in legal and administrative fees. Desperate to reunite his family, Hamid began falsifying internal reimbursement records at his workplace, creating fictitious entries for laboratory items that had never been purchased. Over a period of six months, he misappropriated approximately $20,000, which he used to pay the lawyer.

An internal audit later uncovered the discrepancies, and Hamid immediately confessed when confronted by his employer. He expressed remorse and explained that he had acted out of desperation to help his sister. Hamid was charged with fraud under section 408C of the Criminal Code 1899 (Qld) and pleaded guilty. In 2021, he was sentenced to 12 months' imprisonment which was wholly suspended for three years (i.e he did not serve any time in incarceration). Hamid did not receive a warning from the Department of Home Affairs in relation to this conviction.

In 2025, Hamid got into an argument with a participant of the anti-immigration rally and was charged with assault. Again, Hamid was very remorseful and pleaded guilty to common assault under section 335 of the Criminal Code 1899 (Qld). Hamid was sentenced to 15 days actual time in prison. He is currently serving his sentence at Wolston Correctional Centre with 10 days remaining.

Fatima, now 68 and in declining health, is financially dependent on Hamid. Without his assistance, she cannot afford ongoing medical care or remittances to support Laila in Pakistan. He has also now engaged Care-y Murphy to help his sister with her migration matters who is doing a fabulous job for far less than $25,000!

Hamid has concerns that the Department of Home Affairs may consider cancelling his Refugee (Class XB, Subclass 200) visa under section 501(3A) of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) due to his criminal convictions. Note: only discuss section 501(3A) visa cancellation powers, do not address any other powers.

Your supervisor has asked you to provide a memo addressing the following:

1. Whether Hamid is liable for visa cancellation under section 501(3A) of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). (write in 200 words)