Australian Border Force cancelled Brian Tamaki's visa at Brisbane Airport and sent him back to New Zealand after questioning him over his online comments about other religions, the New Zealand pastor says.

The Destiny Church founder says the cancellation was made under Section 116 of the Migration Act and that he was refused entry. In a six-minute video posted to X, he says he left New Zealand with his family on Tuesday morning, travelling to Brisbane for the Destiny Church Conference.

 

💥BREAKING NEWS! 💥

AUSTRALIA & NZ COLLABORATE TO SILENCE NZ PASTOR!

TWO NATIONS. ONE MAN. ONE FIGHT FOR FREE SPEECH.

On Tuesday, I flew to Brisbane with my family, where I was scheduled to speak at a Christian church conference.

But I never made it past Australian Border https://t.co/yy45Tp51CA

— Brian Tamaki (@BrianTamakiNZ) October 22, 2026

 

He claims he was pulled aside on arrival and held in what he calls "a very small, tiny room, locked room, like a little cell actually." "And then for the next 12 hours straight I was interrogated," he says. He says he then spent the night under guard before officials put him on a flight home to Auckland.

He has also posted what he says are passages from Border Force documents. He says they describe his social media statements as inflammatory and concerning, and warn that his presence could risk 'good order' in the Australian community, or in one part of it: Australia's Sikh and Muslim communities. By his account, the documents also cite multiple online statements about his views on other religions, naming Sikhism and Islam.

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In the video, he says officers told him they were concerned he would upset the Australian way of life. That leaves questions for Border Force and the minister: what standard it applied to the posts he says it cited, who made the call and whether the same 'good order' test applies to every visitor.

The pastor also claims New Zealand authorities played a part. He says officers questioned him about the same statements raised in an earlier inquiry by Mark Mitchell and New Zealand Police, which he dates to four or five months back, and he believes NZ Police alerted Border Force to the conference. "So this is a collaboration, a set-up, by two nations, as I said, to silence one, and that's yours truly, Brian Tamaki," he says.

In his post, he says he wants to know whether New Zealand authorities passed information to Australia and what part, if any, it played in the decision. He says he was refused entry just days out from facing three charges in New Zealand alleging 'racial disharmony'.

Tamaki says he is fine, back home and more energised than ever to keep fighting for free speech. "Well, if I'm going to be dangerous to keep Australia Australia and keep New Zealand New Zealand, you can expect to hear more from me," he says.