Citizens of Australia and its permanent residents were banned from traveling overseas on March 18 as the pandemic rapidly spread and the ban still continues.
Qantas CEO Alan Joyce predicts international travel to return by mid-2021. Mr. Joyce said, “We potentially could see a vaccine by the middle or the end of next year, and countries like the US may be the first country to have widespread use of that vaccine. So that could mean that the US is seen as a market by the end of 2021, hopefully, we could, dependent on a vaccine, start seeing flights again,” reports News.com.au
Aviation expert Neil Hansford predicts that New Zealand will be the first country that Australians can travel. Pacific Islands, Singapore, and Japan will follow as the first international destinations Aussies can travel. United Kingdom, Germany, Scandinavia except Sweden and Ireland are the countries Aussies may likely visit in Europe.
The Health Department said that the outgoing travel restriction on Australian citizens and permanent residents is currently in effect for the duration of the emergency period. The government has refused to set a date for the blanket travel ban to end and has on several occasions implied it will last the rest of 2020.
When can foreigners travel to Australia?
illThe Australian Minister of Trade, Tourism and Investment, Simon Birmingham has announced that Australia will most likely not be opening its borders for foreign travelers for the remainder of this year. It is currently being investigated whether the travel limitations for students and other long-term visitors can be eased up. Whether tourists and business travelers will not be allowed to travel to Australia until the end of this year has not yet been officially confirmed. Flights to Melbourne have been suspended until further notice.
Since 27 March 2020, no foreign-flagged cruise ships may enter Australian waters (with limited exceptions). The cruise ship ban is in place until 17 September 2020, but this does not mean the ban will be lifted at that time. The Australian Health Principal Protection Committee reviews the ban regularly.
Everyone who arrives in Australia will be quarantined for 14 days and might have to comply with other state and territory travel restrictions.
Airline, medevac, and air ambulance crew operating international flights between Australia and New Zealand are exempt from home quarantine requirements, provided they have only been within Australia and New Zealand for the past 14 days.
Domestic Travel in Australia
Due to a drastic increase in the number of new infections in the state Victoria, the state implemented comprehensive lockdown measures starting 8 July and lasting until at least mid-September 2020. This includes a curfew, mandatory mask usage, and travel limitations. The borders with New South Wales are closed. Until further notice, it is no longer possible to travel from Victoria to other states. People that have been to Victoria in the past 14 days can no longer travel to other states. Starting August, the city of Melbourne, the capital of Victoria, and Mitchel Shire, the area north of Melbourne, are in level 4 lockdown. This means that people have to stay indoors as much as possible and observe additional rules. The British Foreign Office advises against all travel to this area. The states Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia, and Tasmania have closed their borders. Non-residents of Tasmania are asked to leave the state.
