New Zealand’s borders will remain shut until at least the end of the year to allow the country to prepare for a phased resumption of quarantine-free travel.
The country’s government unveiled a plan to safely allow a re-opening next year.
A statement said “Once enough people are vaccinated, we will be able to start the next step in the plan: a phased introduction of an individual risk-based approach to border settings in 2022.
“Low-risk, medium-risk and high-risk travel pathways will be created, and which pathway a traveller takes will be based on the risk associated with where they are coming from and their vaccination status.
“Each pathway will have testing and isolation requirements proportionate to that risk.”
The individual risk-based approach requires new systems to be set up, according to the New Zealand government.
“We will use the remainder of 2021 to continue to prepare for the operation of borders under this system,” it said.
“This work includes ongoing work on the development of a traveller health declaration system, investigating new testing technology for rapid testing on arrival at airports and reliable pre-departure testing as well as piloting self-isolation arrangements for some New Zealanders and strengthening other public health measures such as contact tracing.
“New Zealand remains in a strong position. We don’t have Covid-19 in the community and our economy is more open than most.
“Our plan to reopen our borders both protects the gains we have won, while setting us up to safely reconnect New Zealanders and business with the world and seize the opportunities created by our Covid success.”
The country has recorded just 26 deaths in a population of almost five million people.
Prime minister Jacinda Ardern said: “We’re simply not in a position to a fully reopen just yet.
“When we move we will be careful and deliberate, because we want to move with confidence and with as much certainty as possible.”