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[title]As vaccination rates in NSW have continued to increase, so too has the number of freedoms double jabbed people can enjoy. As of November 1, all travel restrictions in the state have been lifted, including, for the first time since March 2020, allowing trips outside of the country. However, many of the rules for travelling within Australia are up to individual states to decide.
You may well be a little unclear on where exactly you can roam in this girt-by-sea land, so to help you navigate the return of travel, here’s a breakdown of the current rules.
Where can I travel internationally?
Wherever your heart desires – so long as you’re fully vaccinated and the country you’re travelling to allows arrivals from Australia. As of November 1, there are no limits on when and where you can travel and best of all, if you’re double jabbed you will not be required to quarantine upon your return. Inbound travellers will be required to deliver a negative result from a PCR test before they board their flight and will need to show proof of vaccination with a vaccine approved by the TGA before they are repatriated through customs. Unvaccinated Aussies returning from overseas will still be required to complete a two-week hotel quarantine, and the number of unvaccinated travellers arriving into NSW will be capped at 210 people per week.
Where can I travel within NSW?
If you’re fully vaccinated and live within Greater Sydney, you can now go wherever you want statewide. Regional travel had originally been due to resume once 80 per cent of adults in NSW were vaccinated, but due to a disparity between the levels of vaccination protection in the state’s cities, compared to the far lower vaccination rates in regional NSW, premier Dominic Perrottet made the decision to delay lifting travel restrictions until November 1. Campsites and caravan parks are reopening, but like hospitality venues, holidayers may be required to check-in at shared sites.
Where else can I travel in Australia?
Each state and territory in Australia has its own border rules for interstate arrivals. Here’s what each state currently allows:
ACT
If you’re fully vaccinated and haven’t been in a high risk geographical area in the last 14 days, and haven’t been to any exposure locations, you can freely enter the ACT and do not need an exemption.
If you have been in a high risk geographical area in the last 14 days (which you can find listed here), you will still be able to enter the ACT for any reason, but you will be required to complete an online exemption form. This will be automated so that your exemption will be immediately actioned and there will be no stay-at-home conditions applied.
This applies to both ACT and non-ACT residents.
If you’re unvaccinated and you haven’t been in a high risk geographical area in the last 14 days, and haven’t been to any exposure locations, you can freely enter the ACT and do not need an exemption.
However, if you have been in a high-risk geographical area in the last 14 days, you will only be allowed to enter the ACT for essential reasons. You will need to apply for an exemption to enter the ACT, which we will consider on a case-by-case basis. You must not enter the ACT until your exemption is approved.
Unvaccinated ACT residents will be permitted to return but are still subject to the relevant conditions.
Victoria
All fully vaccinated people from NSW will be able to apply for a permit to enter Victoria. Double-jabbed people from ‘red zones’ will be required to return a negative test result no more than 72 hours before crossing the border.
Upon arrival in Victoria, visitors must isolate until they return a second negative test result. However, no mandatory 14-day hotel quarantine is required.
Fully vaccinated people travelling to Victoria from ‘orange zones’ will not be required to isolate or present a negative test result upon arrival.
You can check what status your LGA is via the Service Victoria website.
Unvaccinated travellers from ‘red zones’ will still be required to apply for a permit to travel as well as complete a 14-day quarantine upon arrival, although this will now be allowed from home rather than from a costly hotel room.
Unvaccinated travellers from ‘orange zones’ will still need to apply for a permit to enter Victoria, but they will be allowed to isolate until they return a negative test result upon arrival.
South Australia
Trips to SA will not be permitted (except for those with special exemptions) until November 23. From this date, South Australia’s borders will be open to fully vaccinated people from all Australian states and territories, although quarantine will apply to LGAs with community transmission and less than 80 per cent of the population fully vaccinated.
All interstate arrivals will still be required to apply for a travel permit and travelers will need to be able to provide proof of vaccination via the MySA app, which you will need to link to your national immunisation record before your arrival.
If you plan to travel to South Australia, you will need to wait to submit your application until after midnight on November 23, 2021. Any application submitted prior to this time will be assessed against travel restrictions currently in place.
Tasmania
Anyone from NSW hoping to travel to Tasmania will need a special exemption permit to do so, including Tasmanian residents attempting to return home from NSW.
Approval for these permits is only being provided for exceptional circumstances (including end of life visits) and where there is capacity in hotel quarantine. Currently, hotel quarantine accommodation is limited so you may be required to reapply if you cannot be immediately accommodated.
Approved Essential Travellers must provide evidence of having undertaken a Covid-19 test and received a negative result in the 72 hours before they are due to arrive in Tasmania.
It is recommended that you do not make travel bookings until you are approved to enter Tasmania.
Queensland
Currently, the entirety of NSW is classed as a ‘hostpot’ by the Queensland government. Anyone who has been to a Covid-19 hotspot in the last 14 days or since their start date identified for the hotspot (whichever is shorter) will not be allowed to enter Queensland, unless they are a Queensland resident, someone relocating to Queensland (i.e. a new resident) or have an exemption.
Anyone permitted to enter will need to complete 14 days mandatory quarantine upon their arrival.
Northern Territory
Anyone travelling to NT from another location within Australia must fill out an application to do so.
Applications are only accepted for travellers arriving within the next seven days, so if your planned trip is more than a week away you’ll need to wait before lodging your request for entry.
Anyone seeking to enter the NT must declare if they have been in a Covid-19 hotspot, if they have been at a public exposure site during the exposure period, where they have been in the last 28 days, their personal contact details including vaccination status.
Western Australia
WA’s ‘controlled border arrangement’ is a very strict system controlling entry into WA from interstate, depending on where travellers have come from and who they’ve had contact with within the 14 days prior to travel. They are also subject to conditions, including completing a G2G Pass declaration prior to entry. Currently, NSW is considered ‘extreme risk’ and therefore no one who has been with NSW within 14 of their planned trip to WA will be permitted entry into the state.
Find more details on where and when you can travel both in Australia and overseas, on the NSW government website.