File this under “I’ll believe it when I see it”, but Western Australia (WA) has announced its intention to reopen borders from 3 March 2022 to both interstate and international arrivals.
WA had originally intended to reopen from 5 February 2022, but abruptly u-turned on this decision because of concerns about Omicron. Qantas CEO Alan Joyce dubbed this a “North Korea” type situation, with fortress WA the only state in Australia yet to reopen.ย
Western Australia’s reopening set for 3 March 2022
WA has announced thatย it will ease interstate and international border restrictions from 12.01 a.m on Thursday, 3 March 2022, reopening the state after two years of closure.ย
International arrivals will be required to:
- Apply for an ETA (assuming you come from a visa waiver country)
- Be fully vaccinated under Commonwealth Government requirements
- Complete the Digital Passenger Declaration within 72 hours prior to departure
- Take a PCR test within 3 days of departure, or an ART within 24 hours of departure
- Have a registered G2G Pass
- Undertake a Rapid Antigen Test upon arrival within 12 hours and report any positive result
| โ Pre-departure Test Requirements |
|
All COVID-19 test results must feature:ย
You can find a list of the cheapest pre-departure tests in Singapore here. |
While interstate visitors will need to be triple jabbed, international arrivals will only need to be vaccinated by the definition of the Commonwealth Government. This means:
- Two doses at least 14 days apart of:
- AstraZeneca Vaxzevria
- AstraZeneca Covishield
- Pfizer/Biontech Comirnaty
- Moderna Spikevax or Takeda
- Sinovac Coronavac
- Bharat Biotech Covaxin
- Sinopharm BBIBP-CorV (for people under 60 years of age on arrival in Australia)
- Gamaleya Research Institute Sputnik V
- Novavax/Biocelect Nuvaxovid.
- Or one dose of:
- Johnson & Johnson/ Janssen-Cilag COVID Vaccine.
It’s also noteworthy that arriving passengers will be allowed to take an ART (known as RAT to Australians) instead of the more costly PCR test- commendable, because I was fully expecting WA to require PCRs.ย
All arrivals will also be provided with one Rapid Antigen Test upon arrival to meet these interim testing requirements.
There’s this one potentially confusing FAQ on the WA government’s website:
Do children travelling from overseas into WA need to show proof of vaccination to enter?
Proof of vaccination requirements apply to all travellers to WA who are eligible to be vaccinated.
I don’t believe this means children aged 5 and above need to be vaccinated, because the federal government is the one that sets entry requirements, and their rule is that children below 12 are considered fully vaccinated regardless of actual status.ย
VTL flights from Perth
Singapore Airlines (and others, I’m sure) have been burned by Perth’s reopening flip flops, but that hasn’t stopped them from loading VTL services from March. I currently see 3X services available, on SQ214, SQ216, and SQ224.
| Flights | Days | ||||||||
| SQ224 |
S | M | T | W | T | F | S | ||
| PER 0640 โ SIN 1155 |
ย | ย | ย | ย | ย | โ | ย | ||
| SQ216 |
S | M | T | W | T | F | S | ||
| PER 0110 โ SIN 0620 |
ย | ย | โ | ย | โ | ย | โ | ||
| SQ214 |
S | M | T | W | T | F | S | ||
| PER 1645 โ SIN 2200 |
โย | โย | โ | โย | โ | โ | โ | ||
As a reminder, these will appear with a VTL label- don’t book the wrong flights!
There’s no restriction on the flight you can take to Perth, but you’ll need to take a designated VTL flight back to Singapore to enjoy an SHN waiver.ย
Award costs
If you’re interested in redeeming miles, here’s how much it costs to redeem flights between Singapore and Perth on Singapore Airlines. Flights are currently operated by B787-10s and regional configured A350-900s, so there’s only two cabins available.ย
 Redemption Cost between Singapore and Perth(Flight on Singapore Air) |
||
| ย | Saver (One-Way) |
Advantage (One-Way) |
| Economy | 20,000 | 37,000 |
| Business | 36,500 | 65,000 |
For a review of the B787-10 Business and Economy Class experience, check out the links below:
- Review: Singapore Airlines B787-10 Economy Class SIN-ICN
- Review: Singapore Airlines B787-10 Business Class ICN-SIN
VTL travel to Singapore
Singapore will be easing its border restrictions from 22 February 2022, with supervised ARTs replacing PCR tests on arrival, post-arrival Day 2-7 testing scrapped, the relevant travel history period cut from 14 to 7 days, and VTPs no longer required for fully vaccinated LTP holders.
All this means a streamlined VTL process, as summarised below.ย
| โ๏ธย VTL Eligibility Criteria [From 22 Feb 2022] |
|
| All |
|
| Short-term visitors & Work permit holders |
|
| *Children aged 2 or under in the current calendar year are exempt ^Exception for children aged 12 and below, if they are accompanied by vaccinated traveller |
|
Conclusion
WA’s long awaited reopening will happen on 3 March 2022, but given what’s happened in the past, you’d be forgiven for being the least bit skeptical. It’s great if it actually happens of course, not just for holiday goers but for families and friends who have been kept apart for two years.ย
So book your tickets and make plans if you want, but just remember COVID can throw some curveballs, and WA’s track record doesn’t exactly inspire confidence.ย
Do you think WA will really reopen this time?
Typo error in the SQ 216 timings (in the table).
thanks! updated.
If I understand the content correctly, one should submit DPD within 72 hours prior to departure and not at least 72 hours before departure as previously in ATD?
โThe Digital Passenger Declaration (DPD) has replaced the Australia Travel Declaration.
All passengers arriving by air into Australia should complete the DPD. You can start your DPD seven days before your flight and submit it within 72 hours prior to your departure for Australia. This is because you must provide your health information and declaration (vaccination status and COVID-19 test result) within 72 hours before your flight.โ
correct. thanks for pointing that distinction out, i’ve updated the paragraph accordingly.
I think they’ll open this time, but how long they stay open before shutting up again is the real question. Coming from an east coaster here!
The requirement to be fully vaccinated is waived for those aged below 12. Those aged below 5 will be exempt from COVID-19 testing.
May I know where is this officially stated ?
In Melbourne now for the past two weeks. Very few places still ask to see proof of vaccinations but they have accepted the screenshot from our HealthHub. I did not find a way to import our Singapore vaccination records into the Service Victoria or ServiceNSW app.
thanks for the update. I don’t believe it’s possible to import SG vax certificate into Service Vic/NSW, i was told you need to visit a GP to get it converted (which no tourist will do, obviously).
Quite a number of my extended family and I are planning to travel to Perth in June, and on further research, we discovered this:
Do children travelling from overseas into WA need to show proof of vaccination to enter?
Proof of vaccination requirements apply to all travellers to WA who are eligible to be vaccinated.
https://www.wa.gov.au/government/publications/covid-19-coronavirus-travel-wa-frequently-asked-questions#international-travel
Might want to update your article! It’s quite significant I think as this is the only place I know which requires those above 5 to be vaccinated!
that’s a good spot, thanks pearlly. have updated.
but what confuses me is that the federal government sets policies for entry, and according to them, any children under the age of 12 are exempt from the vaccination requirement
https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/covid19/vaccination-testing