A decision to stop boxer Mike Tyson entering Australia in 2001 went all the way to the top, previously private cabinet documents reveal.
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The papers from John Howard's cabinet in 2001, made public on Saturday, noted Tyson would fail the character test set for travellers entering Australia.
Tyson was convicted in 1992 of raping an 18-year-old woman.
The cabinet decided it was appropriate to deny Tyson a visa, but noted the final decision rested with the immigration minister.
The newly declassified trove of documents also reveal cabinet weighed in on the visa application of high-profile rapper, Eminem, on character grounds.
Marshall Mathers III, who uses the stage name Eminem, was sentenced to two years' probation in the US months earlier for carrying a concealed weapon.
Then-immigration minister Philip Ruddock took into consideration the views of other cabinet members and ultimately decided to rubberstamp his visa, allowing the performer's two-day tour.
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