Fully vaccinated Australians will be able to return home.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced that the ban on international travel will be lifted in November, so that fully vaccinated Australians will be able to return home. States with 80 per cent vaccination rates will open their borders to international travel. New South Wales is expected to be the first state to reach this target.
When New South Wales and South Australia have completed their home quarantine pilots, states and territories that are ready to do so will roll out a week-long home quarantine for vaccinated residents. Meanwhile, unvaccinated return travellers will spend two weeks in managed quarantine at a hotel or other dedicated facility.
Australian citizens and permanent residents must be fully vaccinated in order to quarantine at home, unless they are under the age of 12 or have a medical exemption.
Once these changes are made in November, there will be no travel restrictions for vaccinated Australians entering or leaving the country. International travel will be subject to other travel advice and limits, such as border settings for other countries.
“We will also work towards completely quarantine-free travel for certain countries, such as New Zealand, when it is safe to do so,” said Scott Morrison.
When restrictions are removed, travellers will be able to access an internationally recognised proof of vaccination document. This will include a QR code that is readable around the world.
In addition, the government will also offer facilitated flights into any state or territory that agrees to begin home quarantine trials for returning travellers.
Recognised vaccines
Travellers will need to have received their jabs from a vaccine recognised by the TGA. Four vaccines approved and registered for use by the TGA are Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Moderna and Janssen. In addition, the TGA is also reviewing other vaccines used around the world for the purposes of determining “recognised” vaccines.
Earlier today, the TGA published an initial assessment of the Coronavac (Sinovac) and Covishield (AstraZeneca/Serum Institute of India) vaccines. They’ve advised that these two vaccines will be considered “recognised” for those returning from international travel.
Those that have used a recognised vaccine will be able to quarantine at home.
Australian citizens and permanent residents who have received a TGA-approved vaccine can visit their GP or pharmacist to have their vaccination status updated in the Australian Immunisation Register.
For more information, visit the Prime Minister’s statement here.