Scott Morrison announce Australians can jet overseas from next month

Scott Morrison has announced a reopening plan for international travel, more than 18 months after he slammed the border shut.

Eighteen months after Australia slammed its borders shut to the world, Scott Morrison has announced international travel will resume in November if states hit key vaccination targets.

The Prime Minister on Friday announced new thresholds the states will need to meet before they can reopen to international travel.

“It will be time very soon that we will be able to open those international borders again,” he said.

“That will enable Australians who are fully vaccinated, and Australians and residents of Australia who are overseas, who are fully vaccinated, to be able to travel again.

We will also be able to lift those caps on our airports in states where they have moved into phase C of the program. That is where Australia is now preparing to move. This will happen next month.”

Mr Morrison closed the borders to all non-citizens and nonresidents in March 2020 in response to the first wave of the pandemic, with returned travellers forced into hotel quarantine at a cost of more than $3000.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison says Australia will be ready for “take off” next month. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

The government expects once changes are made in November, overseas travel restrictions will be scrapped and Australians will be able to travel subject to any other travel advice and limits.

Fully vaccinated travellers with TGA approved vaccines will be able to home quarantine for seven days. Unvaccinated travellers, or travellers who have received a non-TGA approved vaccine, will be pushed into hotel quarantine facilities.

The medical regulator recognises the Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Moderna, Johnson and Johnson vaccines.

On Friday, the TGA announced it will recognise people who received China’s Sinovac and AstraZeneca vaccines produced at the Serum Institute of India, as being fully vaccinated for the purposes of qualifying for home quarantine.

NSW will be the first state open to international travel with Victoria expected to be the next cab off the rank. Arrangements for home quarantine will be subject to each state and territory.

The announcement is good news for the tens of thousands of Australians who have been stuck abroad and unable to secure a flight home since the beginning of the pandemic.

Mr Morrison said the government was working to offer facilitated commercial flights for Australians stranded overseas into states and territories that agree to commence home quarantine trials.

Home quarantine will be offered for vaccinated travellers. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gaye Gerard

The announcement comes ahead of a national cabinet meeting where leaders are expected to thrash out the finer details of the roadmap out of lockdowns and border restrictions.

Tourism giant Flight Centre has threatened to mount a legal challenge against domestic border closures if Queensland, Tasmania and Western Australia do not reveal plans to join Victoria and NSW in opening up.

Chief executive Graham Turner said internal border closures were costing the company $100 million a month.