Australia is set to further relax the Kovid-19 pandemic restrictions from 1 December. Over 200,000 vaccinated foreign students and skilled workers are expected to return to the country from next week.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced on Monday that from 1 December students, skilled workers and travelers on working holidays will be allowed to disembark at Sydney and Melbourne airports without needing to take an exemption from the travel ban.
“From 1 December 2021, fully vaccinated, eligible visa holders can come to Australia without needing to apply for a travel waiver. Eligible visa holders include skilled and student groups, as well as humanitarian, working holiday makers and provisional family visas holders,” said Scott Morrison.
He also said, “The return of skilled workers and international students to Australia will further strengthen our economic recovery, help our economy provide valuable workers and support our vital education sector.”
Under the new guidelines, passengers will have to:
, be fully vaccinated with a full dose of vaccine approved or recognized by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) of Australia
, hold a valid visa for one of the eligible visa subclasses
,Provide proof of their vaccination status
, Submit a negative COVID-19 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test taken within three days of departure
, comply with the quarantine requirements in the state or area of their arrival, and in any other state or territory to which they plan to travel
The Australian government expects 200,000 arrivals in the two categories by January, news agency Associated Press quoted Scott Morrison as saying.
Vaccinated citizens of Japan and South Korea will also be allowed into Australia without quarantine. But the government has not yet decided when common tourists will be allowed to return.
Scott Morrison said, “I think Australians are very much looking forward to seeing us do this step-by-step.”
“They’ve gone through a lot and they’ve sacrificed a lot to make sure we can open safely so that we can stay open safely,” he said.
While vaccinated travelers will be able to arrive without quarantine in New South Wales and Victoria, Australia’s most populous states, low vaccination rates in some parts of the country still impose pandemic restrictions across state lines.
Australia reopened its border to quarantine-free travelers on 1 November after 20 months of some of the most stringent pandemic restrictions adopted by any democratic country for the first time. Arrival was previously restricted to Australian citizens and permanent residents.
The first flights in the Australia-Singapore quarantine-free travel bubble began on Sunday.
(with inputs from AP)