Featured Image Credit: X/ Sneako
There are complaints of a 'broken' visa system, as controversial streamer Nicolas De Balinthazy has been deported from Australia and handed a lifetime ban.
Better known under his online alias of Sneako, De Balinthazy has had several run-ins with regulators, notably being banned from YouTube several times.
Starting with man-on-the-street videos, Sneako briefly worked with Jimmy "MrBeast" Donaldson and then moved into more right-wing topics.
As well as paying people to say racial slurs, he strayed toward the mansophere as he began to discuss the idea of men being superior to women.
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With his following and influence among the young male demographic growing, De Balinthazy has faced further controversy over his links to Kanye West, antisemitic jokes, and claiming that 'transgenderism' was invented by the Jewish community.
Sneako's divisive but notable profile saw him appear on Louis Theroux: Inside the Manosphere, although he's since spoken out against the movement in the aftermath. Having recently butted heads with the manosphere's Andrew Tate, Sneako hopped over to Australia and was seen posting videos with former New Zealand rugby player Sonny Bill Williams.
While filming in Sydney, Sneako discussed his conversion to Islam and landed on the radar of political activist Drew Pavlou. Pavlou called for Sneako to be booted out of Australia, and after gathering nearly 10,000 signatures, the hammer came down from Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke. As well as the government canceling Sneako's visa, Burke said: "We are a better country when he is somewhere else."
Following a meeting with the Department of Home Affairs, Sky News Australia reported how Buke reiterated Australia's stance on Sneako: "Our government has made it very clear we will use every power available to us to protect our community from people coming to this country to spread hatred.
“The clauses that have been used to cancel this visa were amended by the parliament early this year.
"That means it’s not simply the current visa that is cancelled, there is now a lifetime ban preventing him from ever applying for another visa to Australia. We are a better country when he is somewhere else."
De Balinthazy posted an image of himself on a plane back home, although he clapped back at the idea he was being deported. While many have applauded the decision, and Sky News host Sharri Markson congratulated Burke for acting quickly, she admitted there are questions about how the controversial streamer was given a visa in the first place – especially with his history of being banned on numerous social media platforms.
It was so fun deporting Sneako from Australia today.
— Drew Pavlou 🇦🇺🇺🇸🇺🇦🇹🇼 (@DrewPavlou) May 6, 2026
I want my American friends to get to experience the joy of deporting him too.
Hopefully one day soon
Speaking about De Balinthazy, Markson said: “He’s a misogynist, an antisemite, and seems to be a hybrid of Islamist extremism and Neo-nazism.”
She added that there “seems to be something fundamentally wrong with Australia's visa processing system."
Markson says this isn't the first visa that has been canceled after Sky News Australia reported on the news, asking why Home Affairs isn't doing more to vet its applicants. As the former head of Home Affairs, Mike Pezzullo suggested it's because the department's intelligence division of 450 analysts has been dismantled. Although Pezzullo’s claims are unsubstantiated, Markson maintained there's "something evidently seriously wrong with Home Affairs' intelligence function," saying the country needs to scrutinize Sneako's actions while he was there. This included an interview with Ahmad Hraichie (known as the "Muslim undertaker”), the father of convicted ISIS terrorist Bourhan Hraichie. Elsewhere, there was a podcast recorded with the OnePath Network as Markson reiterated the 'serious concerns' about Home Affairs' process.
