New Zealanders will be permitted to enter two of Australia’s eight states and territories within a fortnight under a new travel bubble arrangement with our across-the-ditch neighbour.
Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, announced the plan on Friday, saying travellers from New Zealand would be permitted as long as they had not visited a designated COVID-19 hotspot in the 14 days before they flew to Australia.
A COVID-19 hotspot is defined as a location with a rolling three-day average of three daily cases.
From October 16 the trans Tasman travel bubble would free up 325 additional places in hotel quarantine in Sydney each week. NSW and the Northern Territory took up the offer for the bubble at the last national cabinet meeting, with South Australia expected to be next.
So far, New Zealand Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern has not advised whether reciprocal travel allowances for Australians to visit New Zealand would be offered before Christmas.
Mr Morrison also said that under the new arrangements, people arriving in New Zealand from other Pacific island nations that are permitted to enter New Zealand, could then travel to Australia to undertake seasonal employment, such as fruit picking or other farm work once they had completed 14 days quarantine in New Zealand.
