The Government’s five-step plan to reopen New Zealand to vaccinated travellers this year has given us some specific dates to work with, but it can be tough to work out how the rules apply to you and your friends and family members.
Stuff Travel received numerous queries in the wake of Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s announcement last Thursday that border restrictions would begin to ease from 11:59pm on February 27, when vaccinated New Zealanders will be able to self-isolate rather than spend time in managed isolation and quarantine (MIQ) when they arrive in the country.
Here, we’ve attempted to answer your most burning questions. Please bear in mind that self-isolation will be available only to fully vaccinated travellers and unvaccinated kids under 17 who are travelling with vaccinated parents or guardians. Unvaccinated travellers will need to enter MIQ.
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If they’re fully vaccinated New Zealand citizens, residents or other eligible travellers under current border settings, they can visit from 11:59pm February 27 and self-isolate upon arrival.
Partners, dependent children and parents of dependent children in Australia can also bypass MIQ from this date if they hold a visa based on their relationship to a New Zealand citizen or resident, are travelling with a New Zealander, or live in New Zealand.
If they don’t meet these criteria, they will need to wait until as late as July. New Zealand’s borders are set to open to all travellers from Australia by July 31 at the latest, but Ardern has said there is a high chance this could happen earlier.
Partners, dependent children and parents of dependent children in destinations other than Australia can self-isolate from 11:59pm March 13 if they hold a visa based on their relationship to a New Zealand citizen or resident, are travelling with a New Zealander, or live in New Zealand.
Other family members (and friends) will need to wait until July if they’re coming from a visa-waiver country or territory, already hold a valid visitor visa, or are arriving on an Accredited Employer Work Visa.
If they don’t fall into any of these categories, they will need to wait until October, when normal visa processing will resume, and travellers from anywhere will be able to come to New Zealand and skip MIQ.
A huge list of countries have visa waivers for visiting New Zealand for up to three months – including the USA, UK, Japan, and most of Europe. A full list can be found on the Immigration New Zealand website.
Australian citizens and permanent residents who live in New Zealand can self-isolate from 11:59pm February 27.
You should submit a “request to travel” form to Immigration New Zealand (INZ), a spokesperson for the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet’s (DPMC’s) Covid-19 Group said.
“INZ assess it then issue an invitation to apply (ITA) that says they can apply for a visa at the border. The ITA demonstrates permission to travel, and they will apply for a resident visa on arrival.”
The $45 fee to request entry to New Zealand is waived if you are an Australian citizen who normally lives here.
They will if they hold a visa based on their relationship to you, are travelling with you, or live in New Zealand. They don’t need to meet all three of these criteria – one will do.
They can self-isolate from 11:59pm February 27 if they’re travelling from Australia, and from 11:59pm March 13 if they’re arriving from elsewhere.
Initially it will depend on the type of visa you hold.
If you have a resident visa, you will be able to self-isolate from 11:59pm February 27 if you’re travelling from Australia, and from 11:59pm March 13 if you’re travelling from elsewhere.
If you hold an existing temporary work or student visa, self-isolation is available from 11:59pm April 12. Accredited Employer Work Visa holders can bypass MIQ from July (along with visitors from visa-waiver countries), and all other New Zealand visa holders can self-isolate from October.
You will be able to self-isolate from 11:59pm April 12, when the borders reopen to offshore temporary work and student visa holders. Students who are already in New Zealand and travel overseas will also be able to skip MIQ upon their return, the DPMC Covid-19 Group spokesperson said.
Yes, you can travel by public or private transport to the place you are set to self-isolate, which means you can catch a domestic flight or take a bus.
“You should travel directly to the place where you’re self-isolating, making sure you scan in and wear a mask on the way, for example if you stop for petrol or if you take a bus,” the DPMC Covid-19 Group spokesperson said.
“The priority is to ensure people can get to their self-isolation location in the safest manner possible, while keeping in mind people still may need to transit around the country from main centres.”
Yes, travellers are able to self-isolate with family or friends. Other household members will be able to come and go as they please unless the traveller returns a positive Covid-19 test or develops symptoms of the virus. In that case, household members would have to follow close contact isolation rules.
Travellers who contract Covid-19 in New Zealand will only be able to leave the country when they return a negative result as airlines will not allow them to board an international flight without one.
Unvaccinated children under 17 are able to join their vaccinated parents or guardians in self-isolation.
Self-isolation basically means staying at home or in suitable alternative accommodation. This could be holiday accommodation, but you will need to ensure you tell the owner or manager that you will be self-isolating when you book.
This is yet to be clarified. The DPMC Covid-19 Group spokesperson said further guidance on self-isolation will be provided later in February.
Travel insurance with Covid-19 cover for overseas trips has been very difficult to come by throughout the pandemic because of the Government’s “do not travel” (level four of four) advisory. However, this is soon set to change.
The travel advisory for Australia will be lowered to “exercise increased caution” (level two) at 11:59pm on February 27 – the date from which New Zealanders in Australia will be able to skip MIQ.
At 11:59pm on March 13, the global travel advisory will be removed and destination-specific advisory levels will be reintroduced.
House of Travel chief operating officer Brent Thomas said that when travel advisories are moved to lower categories “insurance will respond in a significant number of situations where a person is affected by Covid either directly or indirectly”.
As always, it will be important to read the fine print so you are clear on which scenarios you are covered for.
Most insurers will not cover travellers for Government-mandated restrictions or lockdowns, meaning you could be forced to fork out for an extended stay if these things prevent you heading home when you’d planned.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the Government will continue to monitor the need for self-isolation.
She said travellers will be required to self-isolate because it is “highly likely” they will come into contact with the Omicron variant while travelling.
“The strong advice from our public health officials is that we still need it to manage our way through Omicron, but there will be a time in the not-too-distant future when that will not be the case,” she said.
Initially, travellers will have to self-isolate for 10 days, but this will drop to seven days when New Zealand enters phase two of the three-phase public health response to Omicron.
Yes, if you’re a fully vaccinated citizen, resident or other eligible traveller arriving from Australia.
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