“The minister retains the powers to intervene in cases where there are compassionate and compelling reasons for someone to be granted a visa,” a spokesperson for his office told this masthead when asked about Luca’s case.

But an email to Luca from Home Affairs in September last year said Giles had no power to intervene after that opportunity had been exhausted under the previous government in May 2017, when former assistant immigration minister Alex Hawke determined it wasn’t in the public interest to step in.

Hawke’s refusal came three years after the former Migration Review Tribunal found that Luca possessed skills that would benefit the Australian community but decided not to overturn the government’s decision to bar him from gaining permanency because of his HIV status.

After Hawke refused to intervene Luca was given three weeks to leave the country, before his employer appealed to the then-government to allow him to stay. He was granted a special visa with temporary working rights, before switching to a partner visa with his New Zealand partner.

However, Luca questioned whether he could stay in the country permanently on a temporary basis when he is allowed to reapply next year. “This is a difficult question because it has taken a toll,” he said. “I spent the whole of my 30s with this thing on the back of my mind. I wasn’t able to see my family for many years, not able to settle down and buy a house. I’m running out of options.”

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Greens immigration spokesman David Shoebridge said Luca’s was a clear case where Home Affairs’ attitudes and policies had failed to take into account changing community sentiment and advances in medical treatment.

“In 2024, an HIV diagnosis should not be a reason for Home Affairs to refuse permanent residency in Australia,” he said. “We need a federal government that fights this kind of misinformed stigma on HIV, not one that reinforces it.”

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