A Pakistani refugee will be allowed to stay in Australia after winning a High Court challenge against a decision by former immigration minister Scott Morrison.
The High Court on Wednesday unanimously ruled a refusal to grant him a permanent protection visa was not based on law.
The man arrived at Christmas Island on an asylum-seeker boat in May 2012.
Mr Morrison was not satisfied that it was in the national interest to grant him a visa.
The court ruled the minister could not refuse the visa application on the basis the man was an unauthorised maritime arrival.
Chief Justice Robert French made an order commanding the minister to grant the man a permanent protection visa.
A spokesman for the current Immigration Minister Peter Dutton said the High Court’s decision had been acknowledged and a permanent protection visa will be issued to Plaintiff S297 within seven days.
"The Department of Immigration and Border Protection is looking into the implications of the decision, but they appear to be limited," he said.
"This decision doesn’t affect the Government’s policy that illegal maritime arrivals will not be granted permanent protection visas."
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