Immigration Minister Scott Morrison has confirmed the department is no longer processing any applications from West African countries affected by the virus including Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea.
William Davies came to Australia as a refugee from Liberia and said many of his friends and family members have since tried to do the same.
But for some, it's too late.
A childhood friend, his wife and six-month-old-baby all died from Ebola within two weeks.
Mr Davies described the government's block on visa applications as a death sentence
"It's like someone is in the house that is burning with fire and this person is trying to get out of this house and someone is shutting the door on them, it means there is no more hope,” he said
Mr Davies spent 10 years in a refugee camp being processed, and said the current processing measures are so stringent the chance of an Ebola infected person getting to Australia is near impossible.
"You have to do Malaria test, you have to blood test, even urine test and everything you have to go through so I think there is no one someone could come in with Ebola because of the checks,” he said.
The government measures mean temporary visas granted to people in Ebola-affected countries will also be cancelled, if they haven’t commenced travel, and permanent visa holders who are still in Africa will have to submit to a 21-day quarantine period.
Queensland Liberal MP Andrew Laming said if people don't fully disclose their travel they will face penalties.
"So obviously some people might be reluctant to tell us, that's an issue of breaking the law and that any declaration one makes when entering the country we have to do our best to ask those questions and get accurate answers,” he said.
However Greens spokesman for health Richard di Natale says Mr Morrison shouldn't be making decisions on who needs to be quarantined.
"The Immigration Minister has gone rogue here,” he said.
“He doesn't have the qualifications to make these calls and I want to know what advice he's been given by the chief health officer by the health department about whether this is an appropriate response."
Nineteen people in Queensland entered home isolation earlier this month, though none have tested positive for the disease so far.
Pamela Curr from the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre has accused the government of scare-mongering.
"It's about beating the drum to frighten Australians about people from Africa, and really we would hope for better political leadership than that,” she said.
The Liberian Australian community fear the new government measures will lead to a worsening of the crisis, as they say many in the West African countries rely on income sent from family members working in Australia.
William Davies said he's the only one in his family working in Australia, and every fortnight he sends money back home to help support his parents and eight siblings.
"Basically we have to send money down every fortnight, every month to sustain our family,” he said,
“Some people had been hoping that if another member of their family came out to Australia, the burden would be less on them."
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