Australia has canceled Kanye West’s visa after he released a song called “Heil Hitler” in May 2025. Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke announced the decision on July 2.
“He’s made a lot of offensive comments that my officials looked at again once he released the ‘Heil Hitler’ song, and he no longer has a valid visa in Australia,” Burke told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
West, who now goes by Ye, has been visiting Australia regularly because his wife Bianca Censori is from Melbourne. The couple married in 2022. Despite these family ties, Australian officials determined the rapper’s recent behavior violated the country’s standards for visitors.
The controversial song was released on May 8, 2025 – exactly 80 years after Victory in Europe Day, which marks Nazi Germany’s defeat in World War II. Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube quickly removed the track from their platforms.
Burke explained Australia’s position clearly: “What’s not sustainable is to import hatred… We have enough problems in this country already without deliberately importing bigotry.”
This wasn’t West’s first brush with controversy. In February 2025, he posted statements on social media platform X declaring “I love Hitler” and “I am a Nazi.” During the Super Bowl that month, West reportedly ran an advertisement directing people to his clothing website, where he sold t-shirts with swastikas under the product code “HH-01” – widely understood as shorthand for “Heil Hitler.”
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Australia’s decision is based on its Migration Act, which allows officials to deny entry on “character grounds” when someone’s public behavior is considered harmful to social cohesion. The country has previously denied visas to individuals who promoted hateful views.
“Australia does not welcome hate speech, no matter how famous the person is,” Burke stated. He confirmed that any future visa applications from West would face the same scrutiny.
In 2023, Australia’s Education Minister Jason Clare had already criticized West’s “awful” antisemitic comments, suggesting that people making similar statements had been denied entry before. The release of the “Heil Hitler” song appears to have been the final factor in the decision.
West and his representatives haven’t commented publicly on Australia’s decision. The 47-year-old rapper has previously spoken about his struggles with bipolar disorder, though this wasn’t mentioned as a factor in the visa cancellation.
The visa that was canceled was described by Burke as “lower-level” and not related to concert performances. Australia’s stance sends a clear message that even celebrities with family connections to the country must abide by its standards regarding hate speech and harmful content.
