The applicant, A, an Albanian national applied for international protection in Ireland. The applicant's request for international protection was rejected at first instance and on appeal by the International Protection Appeals Tribunal.

The applicant requested a review of the Minister's decision which had denied his request for permission to stay in the Irish State. The applicant highlighted his ties to the Irish State through his work, his launch of his own small business and references from friends and coworkers. The International Protection Office (IPO) made a ruling, citing Section 49(3) of the International Protection Act (IPA), in which it denied the applicant's request for permission to stay since Article 8(1) of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) had not been violated.

The applicant filed an appeal against the decision with the High Court, which granted the appeal. The High Court ruled that Section 49 of the International Protection Act (IPA) mandates an evaluation that goes beyond a mere inquiry into potential violations of an individual's rights under the ECHR. The High Court held that the IPO's decision was unlawful because it misapplied the statutory standard included in Section 49(3) of the IPA, failing to take into account non-ECHR considerations and providing insufficient justification for the denial. The High Court affirmed that, according to domestic law, there is a lower threshold for a successful application for permission to remain. Thus, the applicant's ECHR rights do not need to be shown to have been violated.