Australian Government Department of Education, Skills and Employment has published the fact sheet on the reopening of international travel to students as follows:
Australia s borders will reopen to fully vaccinated international students and Temporary Graduate (subclass 485) visa holders from 1 December 2021.
This will allow education providers to plan for the return of international students, and for students to arrive in Australia and complete pathway courses prior to the commencement of the 2022 academic year.
International students are an important part of the Australian community, and we look forward to welcoming them back to our classrooms, campuses and communities.
Who is eligible?
To access this arrangement, travellers must:
be fully vaccinated and travel no earlier than seven days after receiving a completed dosage of a vaccine approved or recognised by Australia s Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA)
o Children under 12 and those who are medically exempt from COVID-19 vaccination can gain access to the same arrangements as fully vaccinated travellers.
o Arrangements are also in place to permit unvaccinated minors aged 12-17 years to travel with a fully vaccinated adult. Travellers should check the specific requirements with the state or territory to which they are travelling.
hold a valid visa for one of the eligible visa subclasses
provide proof of their vaccination status
present a negative COVID-19 Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test taken within 3 days of departure (unless a medical exemption applies).
Travel Exemptions
From 1 December 2021 fully vaccinated international students with a valid visa no longer need an exemption to travel to Australia. More information on travel exemptions can be found at the Department of Home Affairs website.
Quarantine requirements
International students and Temporary Graduate visa holders arriving in Australia need to comply with the quarantine requirements in the state or territory of their arrival, and any other state or territories to which they plan to travel.
Travellers returning to Australia may only enter and travel between NSW, Victoria and the ACT without quarantining. Travellers may be responsible for costs of quarantine if they arrive in a state or territory without meeting entry requirements. Further advice is available at https://www.australia.gov.au/states.
Proof of COVID-19 vaccinations
Travellers vaccinated in other countries will be able to present certificates in formats that meet the following criteria:
Issued by a national or state/provincial-level authority or an accredited vaccination provider
Written in English or accompanied by a certified translation
Containing at a minimum:
- name as it appears in the traveller’s passport
- either date of birth or passport number
- the vaccine brand name, and
- the date of each dose or the date on which a full course of immunisation was completed.
Information on foreign vaccination certificates is available on the Australian Passport Office website.
Pre-departure PCR testing
At this point in time, all travellers to Australia, including those who have been vaccinated, must provide evidence of a negative pre-departure polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test within 3 days before their flight s scheduled departure. The Australian Government continues to review this requirement taking into account the most recent scientific evidence.
Exemptions to pre-departure testing requirements are available for specific individuals and countries. Exemption criteria and supporting documentation are defined in the legislative instruments that sit under the Biosecurity Act. For more information visit the Department of Health website.
Future role of the Protocols and Preconditions for International Student Arrivals
To guide the state and territory planning process, the Australian Government agreed to the Protocols and Preconditions for International Student Arrivals with states and territories in late 2020.
Following the Government s announcement on changes to border restrictions for fully vaccinated international students, the future role of the protocols is under consideration.
COVID-19 advice for international arrivals to Queensland
If you are coming to Queensland direct from overseas
You will need to complete 14 days of mandatory quarantine at a government nominated hotel at your own expense in accordance with the Quarantine for International Arrivals Direction (Opens in new window). These are subject to Queensland’s international air arrivals cap.
If you are arriving from overseas via another state or territory
If you have been overseas in the past 14 days, you will need to meet the relevant requirements for entry to Queensland and will be required to quarantine in a government-nominated facilitiy until 14 days has passed since your arrival into Australia and since you have been in a domestic airport.
If arriving from a safe travel zone
You will not need to quarantine if you:
- Have only been in a safe travel zone country for 14 days prior to departing the safe travel country on a quarantine free flight, (Opens in new window) within 72 hours of departure returned a negative COVID-19 PCR test result, and are fully vaccinated unless you are under the age of 12 years or have a medical contraindication evidenced by a registered medical practitioner, or
- Are maritime crew who is not required to quarantine under the Protocol for maritime crew members joining or signing off a vessel in Queensland (Opens in new window) approved by the Chief Health Officer, or
- Have received a written exemption from hotel quarantine from the Chief Health Officer or delegate.
Before entering Queensland
You must apply for and receive a Queensland International Arrivals Registration (Opens in new window) before entering Queensland if you have been outside Australia in the last 14 days.
If you are entering from a safe travel zone country on a quarantine-free flight you are required to complete a Queensland Travel Declaration (Opens in new window) prior to entering Queensland.
The information collected in the registration process includes your contact details and who you are travelling with. This information helps to determine suitable quarantine arrangements and allows us to contact you to provide additional information about your obligations in entering Queensland and other COVID-19 related purposes.
Children under the age of 18 travelling with their parent or guardian can be included in the parent or guardian’s registration and do not require an individual Queensland International Arrivals Registration. Unaccompanied minors will need to be met by a parent or guardian at the airport who will enter 14 days of government-arranged quarantine with them unless an exemption from quarantine has been granted.
On arrival to Queensland you will be met by an emergency officer and served with a Quarantine Direction Notice and transport to your government arranged accommodation will be provided.
Please present your QR Code to an Emergency Officer at the border check point upon arrival in Queensland or as requested at the government arranged quarantine accommodation.
Source: https://www.qld.gov.au/internationalarrivalstoqld