Had clearance for Australia entry after Covid: Djokovic's court papers

Tennis world number one Novak Djokovic mounted his legal challenge on Saturday to being refused entry to Australia, saying he had immigration clearance to enter the country after contracting Covid-19 last month.

On his third day in immigration detention in Melbourne, the Serbian superstar's court filing confirms speculation he had caught Covid. It escalates a furore over Australia's handling of a medical exemption from the country's vaccination rules that has rocked world tennis.

Djokovic, a vocal opponent of vaccine mandates, has been holed up since Thursday in a Melbourne hotel after his visa was cancelled due to problems with the exemption.


His filing, ahead of a court hearing on Monday over his visa cancellation, says Djokovic had received the exemption from tournament organiser Tennis Australia, with a follow-up letter from the Department of Home Affairs saying he was allowed into the country. "I explained that I had been recently infected with Covid in December 2021 and on this basis I was entitled to a medical exemption in accordance with Australian Government rules and guidance," Djokovic says in the filing.

He says he told Australian Border Force "officers that I had correctly made my Australian Travel Declaration and otherwise satisfied all necessary requirements in order to lawfully enter Australia on my visa."

Djokovic returned his first positive Covid-19 test on December 16 but by December 30 "had not had a fever or respiratory symptoms of Covid-19 in the last 72 hours", the filing says.

If Djokovic loses his legal fight, the Australian Border Force said: "A person whose visa has been cancelled may be subject to a three-year exclusion period that prevents the grant of a further temporary visa." "The exclusion period will be considered as part of any new visa application and can be waived in certain circumstances."