Almost two years after the Australian government closed the country to the world, the international border is set to reopen to those who are fully vaccinated.
Almost 300,000 people have travelled to Australia since it started reopening its borders in November last year. Photo: AFP
Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the new border rules would come into place on 21 February.
"The condition is you must be double vaccinated to come to Australia," he said.
"That's the rule. Everyone is expected to abide by it."
Australia Prime Minister Scott Morrison Photo: AFP
State-based cap and quarantine arrangements will continue, and will be up to state governments to alter as they see fit, Morrison said.
Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews said unvaccinated travellers would still need to apply for a travel exemption to come to Australia and have to undergo hotel quarantine if they were granted permission to enter the country.
"To be clear, we are absolutely welcoming back fully vaccinated visa holders. For those who are not vaccinated, they will have to provide proof that there is a medical reason that they cannot be vaccinated."
Morrison made it clear, with a reference to the recent Novak Djokovic saga, that even if people had the correct visa to enter Australia, if they were not fully vaccinated - or had an exemption - they would not be allowed to enter.
"I think events earlier in the year should have sent a very clear message to everyone around the world that (that) is the requirement to enter into Australia," he said.
The tourism industry, which has relied on the domestic market that has itself been heavily impacted by movement restrictions, welcomed the decision which comes three months before Morrison is due to face an election.
"Over the two years since the borders have been closed the industry has been on its knees," said Australian Tourism Export Council managing director Peter Shelley by phone.
"Now we can turn our collective efforts towards rebuilding an industry that is in disrepair," he added.
International and domestic tourism losses since the start of the pandemic totalled A$101.7 billion ($NZ108.8 billion), according to government body Tourism Research Australia. International travel spending in Australia plunged from A$44.6 billion in the 2018-19 financial year to A$1.3 billion in 2020-21, it said.
Shares of tourism-related stocks soared as investors cheered the prospect of a return to profit growth. Shares of the country's main airline Qantas Airways jumped 5 percent while shares of travel agent Flight Centre Travel Group surged 8 percent.
Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce said in a statement the company was looking at flight schedules to determine ways to restart flights from international locations soon.
Almost 300,000 people have travelled to Australia since it started reopening its borders in November last year.
The government shut the international border to everyone except Australian citizens and residents in March 2020 amid what was then the emerging coronavirus pandemic.
It was an unprecedented step up from the travel bans that had been in place for anyone from China, Iran, Italy and South Korea in an attempt to slow the spread of Covid-19 in Australia.
The government has slowly begun to reopen to certain countries and people, first with the New Zealand travel bubble and, most recently, allowing tourists from Japan and South Korea, along with some visa holders, back into Australia.
- ABC/Reuters