Leaked documents reveal Tennis Australia begged Home Affairs to review Djokovic visa paperwork

Leaked correspondence has revealed Tennis Australia begged the Department of Home Affairs to check the visa paperwork of Novak Djokovic before he boarded the plane.

Leaked correspondence has revealed Tennis Australia begged the Department of Home Affairs to check the visa paperwork of Novak Djokovic and other players before they boarded planes — a move that could have prevented the visa debacle.

But the request was refused by departmental officials, setting the scene for the ugly war of words now playing out between Australia and Serbia.

News.com.au has obtained letters outlining Tennis Australia’s mounting concerns over how the medical exemptions would work dating back months.

“We have reviewed your questions with the relevant officers within the Department, and with colleagues in the Department of Home Affairs and Australian Border Force,” the November 17 letter from the Department of Health states.

“Travellers who cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons must provide a medical certificate that indicates they are unable to be vaccinated with a Covid-19 vaccine because of a medical condition.”

The correspondence reveals that Tennis Australia had asked senior federal officials, “Is there scope for Tennis Australia to work with Health or Home Affairs to provide certificates for review a number of weeks prior to their departure dates?”

But in response, the Department of Sport said this request was rejected.

Letters sent by Greg Hunt’s office to Tennis Australia in November.

“Health and Home Affairs are unable to provide or review certificates. Certificates are reviewed at check in,” the letter states.

“All travellers who wish to be considered ‘fully vaccinated’ for the purpose of their travel must provide a vaccine certificate which fulfil the requirements as stipulated above. Travellers need to ensure their certificate is compliant.”

On November 17, Andrew Godkin, the First Assistant Secretary Office for Sport in the Australian Department of Health, officials makes clear that no pre-approval for tennis players visas would be offered.

While the correspondence repeatedly states that anyone who is vaccinated will be waved through, the unspoken concern of Tennis Australia is securing the entry of unvaccinated players.

Under state-based exemptions they could be allowed to skip quarantine on the grounds they had recently contracted Covid-19 in the last six months.

Novak Djokovic poses with tournament director Craig Tiley after the 2015 Australian Open. Picture: Greg Wood/AFP

Part of the confusion appears to have arisen over the fact that the medical exemption for skipping state-based quarantine when players arrived in Australia was completely separate to the federal process for approving entry to Australia for visa purposes.

In other words, while tennis players may have secured a medical exemption from quarantining even if they were not vaccinated on the basis of an infection in the past six months, this did not automatically ensure they were cleared to enter Australia.

In separate correspondence, Dr Allison Cairns, an adviser to the chief medical officer of Australia, states that medical exemptions are a state issue.

“Medical exemptions from vaccination will be at the discretion of the state or territory so it would probably be good to touch base with the state of arrival earlier rather than later to determine if any will an issue,” she writes.

But while these state exemptions were granted to skip quarantine, they provided no guarantees for unvaccinated players to enter Australia on a valid visa.