New Zealand to reopen borders starting at the end of February

Wellington: New Zealanders in Australia will be able to skip hotel quarantine and enter New Zealand from 11.59pm on Sunday, February 27, NZ Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has announced.

This will be the first of five stages of gradual border reopening, with Kiwis from all around the world let in two weeks later.

The returning Kiwis will have to be vaccinated and self-isolate – but won’t need a space in a government-run managed isolation facility (MIQ).

New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern says the February and March dates for opening up are very firm.Credit: Getty

From March 13 New Zealanders from the rest of the world will be able to return under similar conditions, alongside some critical workers, and their families.

These first two stages include both citizens and permanent residents.

In April non-citizens with visas – like international students and a wider swath of skilled workers – will be able to skip hotel quarantine.

Then no later than July the country is expected to open up to non-citizens from visa-waiver countries – like Australia, the USA, and the UK.

Ardern emphasised that this could happen before July, however, saying there was a “high likelihood” things could move faster.

From October New Zealand would open up to the rest of the world and normal visa processing would resume.

Ardern said the February and March dates were very firm.

“We have no intention of changing those dates,” Ardern said.

The New Zealand government had originally scheduled a staged reopening beginning in January, but postponed the plan in December due to the spread of the most infectious Omicron variant.

Arrivals to self-isolate

At first, arrivals will need to self-isolate for 10 days, but once New Zealand moves to “phase two” of the Omicron outbreak that period will drop to seven days, meaning returning Kiwis will be treated the same way close contacts within New Zealand now.

They will be given three rapid antigen tests at the airport – one for use on days zero or one, one for use on days five or six, and an extra as a backup. Anyone who tests positive will be asked to get a follow-up PCR test.

Negative pre-departure tests will also be required.

Ardern said hotel quarantine would remain for “high-risk travellers such as those who are unvaccinated” – but it would slowly be transformed into a new National Quarantine Service.

Returning Kiwis won’t have to stay at a government managed isolation and quarantine facility.Credit: AP

She defended the use of hotel quarantine system (MIQ), which has restricted entry to New Zealand for almost two years, saying it had been heartbreaking but had saved lives.

“The anguish of MIQ has been real, and heartbreaking. But the choice to use it undeniably saved lives,” Ardern said.

“MIQ meant not everyone could come home when they wanted to. But it also meant that COVID could not come in when it wanted to, either.”

She said there were safeguards that meant this reopening was safe.

“We will be as boosted as possible at the end of February, the phasing reduces the risk of a surge in cases, and travellers will be testing and isolating, with MIQ remaining for the unvaccinated. This means we will know quickly if a traveller has the virus, including any new variants,” Ardern said.

She also said the self-isolation requirement would be reassessed and likely lifted eventually.

A welcome back sign at Auckland International Airport to celebrate the quarantine-free Australia and New Zealand travel in April 2021. Credit: Bloomberg

“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.”

Fully vaccinated meant two shots of the vaccine – not the booster shot.

Ardern moved the gap between the second dose of the vaccine and the booster from four months to three months on Wednesday, making about a million more Kiwis eligible for the booster – which provides greater protection from the Omicron variant.

That decision was linked to the border reopening decision, as it allows more Kiwis to be protected, and it is hoped it will keep some strain off the healthcare system.

Stuff.co.nz

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