The pause on Quarantine-Free Travel between New South Wales and New Zealand will be lifted from 11:59pm tomorrow, Sunday 9 May (New Zealand time).
New Zealand health officials met today to conduct a further assessment of the public health risk from the recently identified COVID-19 community cases in Sydney. It has been determined that the risk to public health in New Zealand remains low.
The Ministry of Health is advising airlines that flights can resume from 11:59pm tomorrow (Sunday 9 May) subject to there being no further significant developments.
There is some specific advice for travellers to be aware of:
• Flights from New South Wales to New Zealand to resume at 11:59pm Sunday 9 May - subject to no significant developments in New South Wales.
• Anyone who is in Australia and was at any of the locations of interest at the times specified is asked to follow New South Wales health advice regarding isolation and testing and MUST NOT travel to New Zealand within 14 days from when they were at the location.
• As before, anyone who has arrived in New Zealand and who was at a location of interest at the specified time must self-isolate immediately and call Healthline for information on when they should be tested.
Direct flights from New South Wales to New Zealand were paused at 11:59 pm on 6 May, pending further information and reassurance from the New South Wales health investigation into two cases of COVID-19 in the Sydney community.
Information about quarantine-free travel between New South Wales and New Zealand is available on the COVID19 website: covid19.govt.nz/travel-and-the…
Since the two cases were confirmed in Sydney last week, there have been no new community cases of COVID-19 detected in New South Wales.
New Zealand health officials have considered a range of factors, including whether any new cases had been identified, the results from COVID-19 testing of any contacts identified and from the wider Sydney community, and the results from waste-water surveillance testing.
Following this risk assessment and a review of these factors, they have been reassured that at this stage the two community cases in Sydney are contained and that there is no evidence of widespread undetected community transmission.
There will be some additional public health measures required for people who are, or have recently been in Sydney.
• The current NZ focus is on people who were at a location of interest rather than all of New South Wales.
• Anyone who is travelling to New Zealand from Australia will be required to follow some additional instructions in order to limit any risk of further spread.
• Airlines will continue to ask people departing Australia whether they have visited any locations of interest in New South Wales both before and when disembarking from their flights.
• A Section 70 notice has been issued under the Health Act with a number of requirements for any person in New Zealand who attended a known location of interest or any locations of interest that are identified subsequently.
Our officials remain in close contact with health officials in New South Wales and will continue to closely monitor the situation. Updates will be provided if there is any change to this latest advice.
We acknowledge that this travel pause has caused disruption to peoples travel plans.
Information about locations of interest visited by the cases is available on the New South Wales health website: health.nsw.gov.au/Infectious/cov…
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New Zealand remains in close contact with health authorities in New South Wales (NSW) as their investigation into the two cases of COVID-19 in the Sydney community continues.
As of this afternoon, no new locally acquired cases have been identified in NSW since the two cases were identified earlier this week. There is no further information on the epidemiological link between the community cases and the border case to whom they are genomically linked.
Information on the range of public health measures in place in NSW is available here: nsw.gov.au/covid-19/news-…
As a precautionary measure, Quarantine Free Travel from NSW to New Zealand was paused from 11:59pm last night and this pause remains in place.
There are no new cases of COVID-19 to report in the community in New Zealand today.
There is one new case to report in a recent returnee in our managed isolation facilities, since the Ministry’s last update yesterday.
Three previously reported cases have now recovered. The total number of active cases in New Zealand today is 26.
Our total number of confirmed cases is 2,278.
Globally, there have been 154,815,600 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 3,236,104 deaths, reported to WHO.
Since 1 January 2021, there have been 55 historical cases, out of a total of 462 cases.
NEW BORDER CASE
- One case arrived on 24 April and tested positive around day 12. They have been transferred to a quarantine facility in Auckland.
The Government has announced that Quarantine-Free Travel from New South Wales to New Zealand will be paused while the source of infection of the two cases announced in Sydney in the last two days is investigated.
Whole genome sequencing has linked the case yesterday to a recent returnee who arrived in Australia from the United States. A household contact of yesterday’s case has today returned a positive test.
An epidemiological link has yet to be determined between yesterday’s case and the recent returnee.
There are no new cases of COVID-19 to report in the community in New Zealand today.
There is one new case and three cases being investigated as historical infections to report in recent returnees in managed isolation facilities, since the Ministry’s last update.
One previously reported case has now recovered. The total number of active cases in New Zealand today is 28.
Our total number of confirmed cases is 2,277.
Globally, there have been 153,954,491 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 3,221,052 deaths, reported to WHO.
Since 1 January 2021, there have been 53 historical cases, out of a total of 461 cases.
NEW BORDER CASE
- One case arrived on 26 April and tested positive on day 3. They have been transferred to a quarantine facility in Auckland.
Update on New South Wales community case.
The Ministry of Health’s current assessment is that the public health risk to New Zealand from the New South Wales community case announced today is low.
On that basis the Ministry does not at this stage recommend any change in Quarantine Free Travel between New Zealand and Australia. Information about locations of interest visited by the case is available on the New South Wales health website: health.nsw.gov.au/Infectious/cov…
Anyone in New Zealand who has been at any of the locations of interest at the specified times should contact Healthline on 0800 358 5453, self-isolate and be tested as soon as possible.