With Australia set to reopen its borders to fully vaccinated tourists and visa holders from 21 February, Australian airports are eager to welcome back international tourists.
The easing of border restrictions for international travellers comes almost two years after they were introduced in March 2020.
Prime minister Scott Morrison said: “We have been progressively opening our borders since November of last year. Those programmes have proceeded very successfully. Whether it was the programmes we had in place with New Zealand or Singapore, and then with Japan and South Korea, opening up to international students and backpackers and economic migrants who are coming to Australia, that will now be extended to international visitors, who will be able to return.”
Travellers must be fully (double) vaccinated in order to enter the country. They will also be required to submit a negative COVID rapid antigen test under supervision, within 24 hours of boarding their flight.
Commenting further on the easing of restrictions, Australian Airports Association chief executive James Goodwin said: “Airports will be critical to ensuring the logistics associated with resuming international travel will be successfully managed and look forward to working with the government agencies involved.”
Mr Goodwin also noted that the return of international passengers will give the country’s domestic air transport sector a much-needed boost.
“In pre-COVID times, 30 per cent of domestic air travellers were international passengers,” he said. “International tourists don’t just visit one Australian city, they fly from state to state to see all of what our nation has to offer. So it is vital all domestic borders reopen and stay open.”
