New Zealand has announced that its border policy will be tightened for foreigners. Travellers aged 17 and older who arrive by plane must be fully vaccinated against the coronavirus from November 1 to enter the country, responsible minister Chris Hipkins announced.
New Zealand has been largely locked to foreigners for a year and a half. Passport holders and foreigners with residence permits can still enter the country. However, the latter group now has to deal with the vaccination obligation. In addition, all travellers must be quarantined for two weeks after arrival.
Air New Zealand, the country’s flag carrier, has also announced that it will no longer accept unvaccinated passengers on international flights from February. The only exception is people who can demonstrate that vaccination is not possible for medical reasons.
New Zealand has so far been able to prevent the coronavirus from spreading on a large scale. Fewer than 30 deaths have been reported in a population of approximately 5 million people. Minister Hipkins said that an even stricter border policy is being chosen to “further reduce the chance that the virus will pass our border”.
