Federal Court: s 36(3) of Migration Act 1958 provides that Australia is taken not to have protection obligations if non-citizen "has not taken" all possible steps to enter & reside in any other country apart from Australia and the country where they fear persecution. AAT found that Indian Appellant had well-founded fear of persecution in India, but not Nepal. Appellant argued to AAT that, at the TOD of, he could only enter Nepal through India. Was AAT required to consider whether Appellant could or would prospectively: voluntarily return to Nepal; be removed from Australia to India? Or was AAT required to focus instead only on whether, by the TOD, Appellant had taken all possible steps to enter & reside in Nepal?
The Federal Court answered that question as follows: