Australians Welcomed Back In New Zealand From April 12

The date for Australian tourists looking to travel to New Zealand quarantine free has been brought forward. Double vaxed Aussies will be able to visit NZ once again starting from April 12 at 11:59 PM.

Who can enter New Zealand?

• Australian citizens and permanent residents.
• Current temporary work and student visa holders from anywhere in the world, with a valid visa who can still meet their visa requirements — this includes both visa holders currently offshore and those in New Zealand who choose to travel overseas and wish to return.
• Up to 5,000 international students from anywhere in the world for semester 2.

Other Countries Allowed Back From May 1

Other countries with visa waiver arrangements will be allowed in from May 1 2022. However, keep in mind if you’re travelling on a non-Australian passport, you will need to apply and pay for the NZeTA visa, which costs $35 and is valid for two years.

What Are the Requirements?

You must meet some health requirements, including:

• You must provide a negative COVID-19 pre-departure test.
• You must meet vaccination requirements.
• You must do 2 rapid antigen tests (RATs) on Day 0/1 and Day 5/6 and declare your results.
• All positive RATs must be registered and followed up with a PCR test.

Which tests are valid for entry?

People travelling to NZ will need to do one of the following tests pre-departure:

• a polymerase chain reaction(PCR)test administered no more than 48 hours before the scheduled departure of your first international flight to New Zealand, or
• supervised rapid antigen test (RAT)no more than 24 hours before the scheduled departure of your first international flight to New Zealand, or
• a supervised loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP)test no more than 24 hours before the scheduled departure of your first international flight to New Zealand.