Australia will allow all fully vaccinated visa holders, including tourists, to enter the country from February 21, almost two years after borders were first closed.
The tourism industry welcomed the announcement by Prime Minister Scott Morrison yesterday.
The borders have been progressively opening since November, but some groups including bridging visa holders, some immediate family members and tourists were yet to be allowed exemption-free travel.
There is still some detail to be worked through and prospective visitors from overseas may find the initial arrangements a little confusing. Different states have different rules and Western Australia stands alone in requiring arrivals to undergo a period of quarantine.
Victoria is proposing that “fully vaccinated” should mean having received a booster shot, but this is unlikely to become a requirement unless the government’s vaccine advisory body, ATAGI, changes the definition of “fully vaccinated” to mean three doses.
As it stands, the requirements for entry to most states are being double vaccinated and producing a negative COVID test – PCR or rapid antigen – obtained 72 to 24 hours before travel. Other entry requirements including visas where applicable remain unchanged.
About time, isn’t it, Barry? I’m curious to see what the response will be.
Sure is. I think the response will be slow because of a variety of issues. Australia has been open to visitors from a handful of countries for some weeks, but we’re not getting many of them because most have to quarantine when they return home!