Australia’s Covid travel rules and restrictions: What you need to know

Another state will lock NSW residents out as it recorded an alarming number of new locally acquired Covid cases. See where you can still travel across the country.

Queensland will shut its border to NSW from 1am on Friday after NSW recorded 124 new locally acquired Covid-19 cases.

NSW recorded the alarming figure on Thursday, when Queensland reported. no locally acquired cases.

The border will close to all of NSW, except to the usual border zone areas, with police re-establishing checkpoints at the border, warning motorists there will be congestion and to make sure they have the right border pass.

Chief health officer Jeanette Young said if people living in the border zone journey south into the wider hotspot they won’t be allowed to enter Queensland.

See the state of borders across Australia below:

NSW

Orange, Blayney and the Cabonne Shire council will enter lockdown until 12.01am on Wednesday, July 28.

Greater Sydney, including the Central Coast, Blue Mountains, Wollongong and Shellharbour are also in lockdown.
Travellers from the Northern Territory, Queensland or Victoria, including people who have been in those states in the previous 14 days, will need to complete an entry declaration.

SOUTH AUSTRALIA

South Australia entered a seven-day lockdown at 6pm on Tuesday.

It comes after the state introduced tougher restrictions with Victoria, blocking out the state as of midday on July 17.

Under the changes, returning South Australian residents and people who are genuinely relocating to the state or are escaping domestic violence will be able to enter but will need to quarantine for 14 days and be tested on days one, five and 13.

Anyone returning from Greater Melbourne, Geelong or Bacchus Marsh will have to quarantine for 14 days and get tested.

People who have been to Mildura Local Government Area since July 11 will be required to quarantine for a fortnight after arriving in South Australia and will have to get tested for

The border bubble with NSW is no longer a 100km zone, instead it’s restricted to the Broken Hill LGA in NSW and the townships of Manna Hill, Olary, Tikalina and Cockburn in SA

NSW border bubble residents will be able to enter SA with a “permitted purpose to travel” and on two strict conditions.

The first of those conditions is that they haven’t been to any place in NSW outside the Broken Hill LGA

The second condition is that they haven’t associated in person with anyone from outside the border bubble.

The border bubble with Victoria is now a 40km zone from the border stretching into both states.

Victorian border bubble residents will be able to enter SA with a “permitted purpose to travel” and on two strict conditions.

The first condition is that bubble residents must not go outside the 40km zone.

The second condition is that they haven’t associated in person with anyone from outside the border bubble.

VICTORIA

Melbourne’s fifth lockdown has been extended by a further seven days, it was announced on Tuesday.

Residents are only permitted to leave their homes to shop for essential items, get tested or vaccinated, attend essential work, provide medical care or exercise.

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews confirmed the current lockdown measures would continue beyond 11.59pm on Tuesday night until at least 11.59pm next Tuesday.

Currently, only Victorians with compassionate exemptions or essential workers are allowed back into the state from Sydney.

Meantime as of July 11, NSW and the ACT became red zones under Victoria’s Covid-19 traffic light system.

This means non-Victorian residents are no longer allowed to enter the states, and returning Victorians must self-quarantine for 14 days.

They must get tested within 72 hours of arrival and again on or around day 13 of quarantine.

The below changes also came into effect on Saturday, July 10 at 11.59pm:

Northern Territory: Alice Springs and Greater Darwin – incorporating the City of Darwin, Palmerston and Litchfield – have changed from orange zones to green zones. The whole of the Northern Territory is now a green zone.

Queensland: The Local Government Areas of Brisbane, Moreton Bay and regions of the Sunshine Coast have changed from red to orange zones.

The Local Government Areas of Townsville (including Magnetic Island), Palm Island, Ipswich, Logan, Redland, Gold Coast, Lockyer Valley, Noosa, Scenic Rim and Somerset have changed from orange zones to green zones.

Western Australia: The Perth Metropolitan Region and Peel Region in WA have changed from orange zones to green zones. The whole of Western Australia is now a green zone.

Travellers from orange zones must apply for a permit to enter Victoria but cannot do so if they have Covid-19 symptoms or had previously been to a red zone. If approved, they must agree to get a Covid-19 test within 72 hours of arrival and remain isolated until a negative result is returned.

You must still apply for a green zone permit, but those travelling under this are not required to isolate or get a Covid-19 test, but must monitor for symptoms.

QUEENSLAND

Queensland will shut its border to NSW from 1am on Friday as the Covid-19 outbreak in The Premier State worsens.

The border will close to all of NSW, except to the usual border zone areas, with police re-establishing checkpoints at the border, warning motorists there will be congestion and to make sure they have the right border pass.

Chief health officer Jeanette Young said if people living in the border zone journey south into the wider hotspot they won’t be allowed to enter Queensland.

It comes after Queensland closed it border to Victoria, and will do the same to South Australia from 1am on Thursday, July 22.

Border restrictions are also in place with Greater Sydney, including the Central Coast, Blue Mountains, Wollongong and Shellharbour.

If you live in or have visited these areas, you cannot enter Queensland unless you have been granted a special exemption.

If you a returning Queensland resident, you will need to complete 14-day of mandatory hotel quarantine at your own expense.

NORTHERN TERRITORY

The Northern Territory has made hotspot declarations for Greater Melbourne, Geelong and the Moorabool Shire, including Bacchus Marsh.

As of 5pm Thursday July 15, anyone arriving in the NT from those areas will be directed into a fortnight of mandatory supervised quarantine, according to information provided on the NT Government’s Covid-19 information website, coronavirus.nt.gov.au

According to the site anyone who has visited a Melbourne exposure site since July 10 is required to isolate and get tested.

A full list of travel requirements can be found on the NT Health website.

TASMANIA

Tasmania has closed its border to Victoria, NSW and South Australia.

This means that if you are from those states, you can only travel to Tasmania if you are an essential traveller.

Anyone who has Covid symptoms must get tested. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Brenton Edwards

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

Travellers who are from, or have been in, Victoria, NSW or Queensland are not allowed to enter Western Australia unless they have an exemption.

Those coming from the SA and the ACT must undertake 14 days’ quarantine and be tested.

ACT

Non-ACT residents who have been in Victoria, or the NSW areas of Greater Sydney, Central Coast, Blue Mountains, Wollongong and Shellharbour regions of NSW are not permitted to travel into the ACT unless they have an approved exemption.

You can find more information here.

NEW ZEALAND

New Zealand has halted the trans-Tasman bubble with Victoria and NSW.

The NZ Ministry of Health said a better understanding was needed on the developing Covid-19 situation in the Australian state.

The travel bubble freeze would be reviewed again on July 21.

The decision to continue the pause with Victoria was a “precautionary but necessary

measure” while investigations continue, the ministry said.

Originally published as Australia’s Covid travel rules and restrictions: What you need to know