Kiwis stranded in Australia will soon be allowed to return home, though the travel bubble with New South Wales is set to remain paused for the "near future".
Speaking at a post-Cabinet press conference on Monday, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced quarantine-free travel with Western Australia and Northern Territory would be allowed to resume at 11:59pm on July 9, though travel with Queensland and New South Wales remains paused.
Ardern said the bubble with Queensland would be reassessed on Wednesday, though travel with New South Wales will "remain paused for the near future".
Quarantine-free travel with all Australian states and territories was paused late last month as the country battled to contain a fresh outbreak of COVID-19, though travel with Tasmania, ACT, Victoria and South Australia was allowed to resume at 11:59pm on Sunday.
Ardern said the past week was the "most challenging since the bubble was established two-and-a-half months ago".
"Multiple states imposed lockdowns as community cases popped up - at one point around half of the population was in some form of lockdown. In response, we've taken a cautious approach, given those circumstances.
"The closure of the border was a temporary measure to help us get a better handle on the situation, as well as for the Australian authorities to respond to their various outbreaks."
Ardern said New Zealanders stranded in Queensland and New South Wales would be allowed to travel home from 11:59pm on July 9.
She said all those returning to New Zealand would need to meet a number of public health requirements, "this includes making a declaration that they haven't been in a location of interest in the past 14 days, are not symptomatic, are not a close contact, are not awaiting the results of a COVID-19 test".
