Case 101: Quarantine exemption for woman picking up assistance dog

Photo by Capuski on iStock

A woman planned to visit Queensland from interstate to pick up her assistance dog, with her mother and her carer, during a period of COVID-19 border restrictions. She was granted an exemption to enter Queensland where she agreed to isolate for 14 days and then spend a week receiving placement of the dog. However, when they tried to arrange for accessible quarantine accommodation, they were told the woman’s needs could not be met and her exemption approval was withdrawn. The assistance dog had been trained specifically for the woman’s needs at substantial cost and they were concerned that she would lose the dog allocated to her if she was unable to visit Queensland. The complainant chose to have this matter dealt with under the Queensland Human Rights Act. Through early intervention, the complaint was successfully resolved for the woman. Her exemption application to enter Queensland was re-approved. Queensland Health organised suitable accommodation for her, her mother and her carer to complete 14-day hotel quarantine.

Source: The Second Annual Report on the Operation of Queensland’s Human Rights Act 2020-21, p. 157