PREMIUM
News

States and territories introduce border restrictions as Melbourne COVID-19 cluster evolves

As Melbourne's new COVID-19 cluster progresses, will this affect your travel plans?

Here are current restrictions from other states and territories for Victorian travellers:

Queensland

● Queensland Health has declared the local government area of Whittlesea City a hotspot.

● Only Queensland residents who have been in the region since Tuesday, May 11, can return to the state, but they will have to go straight into hotel quarantine.

● Non-residents need an approved exemption to enter, but must still complete the mandated government-approved quarantine.

NSW

● NSW non-residents who have visited a Victorian close contact site cannot enter NSW.

● Non-residents who have visited a casual contact site must have proof of a negative COVID-19 test before entering NSW.

● For a list of the classified sites, visit nsw.gov.au/covid-19/rules/border-restrictions

● NSW residents who have been to either close or casual contact sites must immediately self-isolate for however many days are left of the 14 days since they visited that site.

● All travellers from Greater Melbourne must complete a self-declaration form either 24 hours prior to entering or upon entering NSW.

South Australia

● South Australia imposed a hard border with Greater Melbourne from 6 pm Wednesday night.

● Only essential travellers and returning SA residents are allowed in, and will need to quarantine for 14 days.

● Anyone who has already travelled to SA from Greater Melbourne since May 20, and anyone travelling from the Bendigo area, will need to take a test on days one, five and 13 and isolate until receiving a negative result.

Western Australia

● All Victorian travellers must now be tested within 48 hours of arriving in Western Australia, and self-quarantine until they return a negative result.

● At this stage, people who arrived from Victoria before 6 pm Tuesday, May 25, will not be forced to isolate unless they have visited a potential exposure site.

● But Premier Mark McGowan warned stricter border controls remained a possibility.

Tasmania

● Currently, travellers who have spent time in any high-risk areas are not permitted to enter Tasmania.

● People who are already in the state must self-isolate and call the public health hotline.

● Anyone else travelling from Victoria can still enter — but if they develop symptoms, they must isolate and call the hotline.

● Premier Peter Gutwein said if the cluster worsened, Tasmania was poised to enforce hard borders.

Northern Territory

● People who have visited a Tier 1 exposure site must travel to a suitable place of quarantine and remain there for 14 days from the date of visiting that site and get a COVID test.

● Anyone who has visited a Tier 2 exposure site must get a COVID test and self-isolate until they are notified of the test results.

● Anyone who has visited the Northern Territory from Greater Melbourne since May 6 and is showing COVID symptoms must self-isolate and get a COVID test.

ACT

● ACT residents who have visited an exposure site should contact ACT Health and immediately quarantine for 14 days since last attending the venue.

● ACT non-residents who have visited an exposure site must not enter the ACT unless they have an exemption, or must immediately quarantine if already in the ACT.

● Travellers already in the ACT who have been in Greater Melbourne in the past 14 days must complete an online declaration form at covid19.act.gov.au

New Zealand

● New Zealand has paused its travel bubble with Victoria for at least 72 hours while the source of the Melbourne cluster is investigated.