Certain Australian Visa Subclasses Can Enter Australia Without Travel Exemption From 1 December 2021
In welcome news, the Australian Government today announced that Australian Borders will re-open 1 December 2021 to fully vaccinated eligible visa holders. This will mean the end of travel exemptions for these specified visa holders who will be free to enter Australia after this date.
Who Can Enter Australia From 1 December 2021?
The re-opening only applies to individual travellers who are both fully vaccinated and who hold an eligible visa. The vaccine must be one that is approved by our Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) which currently includes the following:
Two doses at least 14 days apart of:
AstraZeneca Vaxzevria
AstraZeneca Covishield
Pfizer/Biontech Comirnaty
Moderna Spikevax
Sinovac Coronavac
Bharat Biotech Covaxin
Sinopharm BBIBP-CorV (for 18-60 year olds).
Or one dose of:
Johnson & Johnson/ Janssen-Cilag COVID Vaccine.
The final dose of the vaccine must have been administered at least 7 days prior to travel for an individual to be considered ‘fully vaccinated’.
Which Australian Visa Subclasses Can Enter Australia Without Travel Exemption From 1 December 2021
The following visa subclasses are considered ‘eligible visas’ for the purposes of travel to Australia without the requirement of a travel exemption:
Subclass 200 – Refugee visa
Subclass 201 – In-country Special Humanitarian visa
Subclass 202 – Global Special Humanitarian visa
Subclass 203 – Emergency Rescue visa
Subclass 204 – Woman at Risk visa
Subclass 300 – Prospective Marriage visa
Subclass 400 – Temporary Work (Short Stay Specialist) visa
Subclass 403 – Temporary Work (International Relations) visa (other streams, including Australian Agriculture Visa stream)
Subclass 407 – Training visa
Subclass 408 – Temporary Activity visa
Subclass 417 – Working Holiday visa
Subclass 449 – Humanitarian Stay (Temporary) visa
Subclass 457 – Temporary Work (Skilled) visa
Subclass 461 – New Zealand Citizen Family Relationship visa
Subclass 462 – Work and Holiday visa
Subclass 476 – Skilled – Recognised Graduate visa
Subclass 482 – Temporary Skill Shortage visa
Subclass 485 – Temporary Graduate visa
Subclass 489 – Skilled – Regional (Provisional) visa
Subclass 491 – Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa
Subclass 494 – Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) visa
Subclass 500 – Student visa
Subclass 580 – Student Guardian visa (closed to new applicants)
Subclass 590 – Student Guardian visa
Subclass 785 – Temporary Protection visa
Subclass 790 – Safe Haven Enterprise visa
Subclass 870 – Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa
Subclass 988 – Maritime Crew visa
Do I still have to quarantine upon arrival in Australia?
The quarantine requirements are determined by the relevant State or Territory that the traveller is arriving at. Presently, only NSW, Victoria and the ACT have quarantine free arrangements for fully vaccinated travellers.
What do I need to do prior to travelling to Australia?
Unlike pre-pandemic travel, travellers to Australia must undertake a number of steps before boarding an aircraft including:
Checking whether you are exempt from the travel restrictions
Checking whether you will be subject to quarantine requirements at your arrival location
Obtain your foreign vaccination certificate
Complete an Australian Travel Declaration at least 72 hours before your flight
Undertake a pre-departure COVID-19 test
Further details on the above requirements can be found here.
How can Agape Henry Crux Help You?
If you want to find out more, please do not hesitate to contact us. You can book a Migration Planning Session with one of our immigration lawyers to seek professional advice by calling 02-7200 2700 or email us to book in a time at info@ahclawyers.com.
We speak fluent English, Korean, Mandarin, Cantonese, Indonesian, Burmese and Malay. If these aren’t your language, we can also help you arrange an interpreter.
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