Australia to re-open borders to students, workers, vaccinated citizens of Japan, S Korea
22 November, 2021
Australia announced Monday it will again welcome foreign students and skilled workers from next month, easing some of the world's most stringent pandemic travel restrictions.
Twenty months after Australia slammed shut its borders, some visa holders -- as well as vaccinated Japanese and South Korean citizens -- will be able to enter New South Wales and Victoria states from Dec 1 without quarantining. Other states, however, will keep their borders closed to overseas visitors until their vaccination rates rise.
"Australia is re-opening to the world," said Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews as she announced the news, adding it was "yet another step forward for Australia."
The government of Prime Minister Scott Morrison lifted restrictions on Australians traveling overseas last month, sparking a flood of travel bookings for the southern hemisphere summer.
But Morrison -- who is hoping to be re-elected next year -- had pointedly refused to relax travel rules for non-Australians.
That move left an estimated 1.4 million skilled visa holders stuck in Australia, unable to return if they decided to leave.
Business groups had lobbied hard for vaccinated visa holders to be allowed to return, as they struggle to fill jobs and gird for the beginning of a third year of restrictions.
Among those most vocal in calling for rules to be further relaxed was the beleaguered university sector.
According to Universities Australia, an industry group, 130,000 international students remain outside the country.
There had been fears that many Asian students would opt to study in person in the United States or Europe rather than pay for online courses based in Australia.
There is no word yet on when leisure travelers may be able to return to Australia, a blow to the equally hard-hit tourism sector, which has seen visitor numbers virtually evaporate since borders were closed in March 2020.
While some Australian states still require quarantine, vaccinated Australians, some visa holders and vaccinated citizens of Japan, South Korea and Singapore will now be able to visit Australia with only a pre-departure negative COVID-19 test.
Source: japantoday.com
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