Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Friday announced the reopening of international travel and the easing of border restrictions. Morrison said that the international border will reopen next month for states that have reached 80 per cent vaccination rates, starting with New South Wales, reported ABC News.
Fully vaccinated Australians and permanent residents arriving in NSW will be able to home quarantine for a week, instead of paying thousands to quarantine at a hotel for a fortnight, pending the success of the state’s home quarantine trial. Commercial flights out of Australia will resume for vaccinated Australians. On March 20 last year Australia introduced some of the world’s toughest border restrictions in response to the Coronavirus pandemic. Strict restrictions were imposed by Australia from travelling overseas without permission for 18-months.
Morrison said the government would consider quarantine-free travel between some countries, such as New Zealand, “when it is safe to do so”. “It’s time to give Australians their lives back,” he added. He further said, “We’ve saved lives. We’ve saved livelihoods, but we must work together to ensure that Australians can reclaim the lives that they once had in this country.”
India’s Covishield has been declared as a ‘recognised vaccine’ for international travellers as part of measures aimed at safely reopening the country from Nov 21.
