Entrepreneur allowed to leave Australia to collect new yacht despite thousands being denied permission, even to see dying relatives

An Australian entrepreneur has been allowed to head overseas to pick up his new luxury yacht despite wide-ranging bans on people leaving Australia during the coronavirus pandemic.

Jost Stollmann told 9News he applied for an exemption on May 8 and again on May 19 on the grounds of urgent and unavoidable personal business to collect his yacht and to view real estate projects in Greece.

The request was granted on May 29.

The German-Australian says he thinks the exemptions are a violation of rights.

As a former CEO of Tyro Payments, he once hosted Prime Minister Scott Morrison when he was treasurer. He left the company in 2016.

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Mr Stollmann says he's never been a political donor in Australia and that he did ask for help with his exemption from his local MP, Liberal Dave Sharma.

Mr Sharma told 9News there was no special treatment and he did not raise the case with Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton.

Mr Stollman's plea did fall under one of the six criteria for an exemption. Of the more than 100,000 applications since the pandemic began, only about one third have been approved.

Australian man Micky Chung, whose grandmother was dying in Hong Kong, wasn't allowed to leave.

"I've actually got an email saying we don't believe this is urgent," he said.

Mr Stollmann said he won't return to Australia until borders reopen, and says he feels for people like Mr Chung.

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"There is no right to restrict any Australian to visit his dying loved one in his last hour," he said.

"It is an autocratic measure that endangers our democracy. This is incomprehensible and intolerable."

Shadow Home Affairs Minister Kristina Keneally said: "There cannot be special exemptions for a privileged few, and tough rules for everyone else."