New Zealand has announced that it will reopen its borders earlier than expected, with fully vaccinated tourists from Singapore, UK, USA and other visa-waiver countries allowed to enter from 2 May 2022.
| ❓ 1 May or 2 May? |
| The media is reporting the reopening as 1 May 2022, but it actually comes into effect from 1 May 2022 11.59 p.m, essentially 2 May 2022. Take note if you’re planning to take the first flight over! |
This represents a six-month acceleration of the original October timeline, and even better, there will be no quarantine necessary on arrival.
Quarantine-free travel to New Zealand resumes
| ✈️ Summary: Travel to New Zealand |
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From Sunday, 1 May 2022, 11.59 p.m, New Zealand will open its borders to visitors from all visa-waiver countries, regardless of travel purpose.
| 🇳🇿 New Zealand Visa-Waiver Countries | |
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| 1. Citizens only 2. Residents with HKSAR or British National–Overseas passports only 3. Citizens only 4. Citizens only 5. Only if you have a Macau Special Administrative Region passport 6. If you have the right to live permanently in Portugal 7. If you are a permanent resident 8. If you are travelling on a UK or British passport that shows you have the right to reside permanently in the UK 9. Including USA nationals | |
Travellers must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 (children aged 16 and under are exempt). New Zealand accepts any vaccine on the WHO list, so the Sinovac and Sinopharm crowd won’t encounter any issues.
| 🇦🇺 Early access for Aussies |
| Australian citizens and permanent residents get early access to New Zealand from 11.59 p.m on 12 April 2022. Well, they can be the beta testers… |
They must apply for a NZeTA (New Zealand Electronic Travel Authority), and present a negative pre-departure COVID-19 test, which can either be:
- A PCR test taken within 48 hours of departure of the first international flight to New Zealand
- A supervised ART taken within 24 hours of departure of the first international flight to New Zealand
- A supervised LAAMP test taken within 24 hours of departure of the first international flight to New Zealand
Further COVID-19 testing will be required on arrival, and on Day 5 or 6 day in New Zealand (the day of arrival is Day 0). Both tests will be self-administered ARTs, and results (whether positive or negative) must be reported.
You must report both RAT results, whether you test negative or positive.
You will receive an email from the New Zealand Ministry of Health after you complete your traveller declaration. Follow the instructions in the email and report your results using the link in the email.
You can also call the COVID-19 Test Results Line and leave a message with your result.
Call: 0800 432 010
-NZ Government
No isolation is required before/after either test.
Further opening to travellers from non-visa waiver countries is expected to take place from October 2022, although this may be likewise accelerated now.
Travel from New Zealand to Singapore
New Zealand, surprisingly, is neither a Category I nor a VTL country. Instead, it’s on the General Travel: Non-VTL list, which means that all travellers will need to serve a 7-day SHN on return, regardless of vaccination status.
| Category | SHN | PDT | On-arrival Test |
| Category I | N/A | ART or PCR within 2 days of depart. to SG | Self-ART within 24h |
| General Travel: VTL | N/A | ||
| General Travel: Non-VTL | 7 days (Home) | PCR at end of SHN | |
| Restricted | 7 days (Hotel) | PCR within 2 days of depart. to SG | PCR on arrival PCR at end of SHN |
| Category I: China, Macau, Taiwan VTL: Australia, Brunei, Cambodia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Fiji, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Malaysia, Maldives, Netherlands, Philippines, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, UAE, UK, USA [Greece, Vietnam from 16 Mar] Non-VTL: All other countries Restricted: No countries at the moment | |||
However, I am almost certain that the demise of the VTLs is nigh, and therefore I wouldn’t worry too much about this. By the time May comes round, Singapore is very likely to have transitioned to a simpler system based solely on vaccination status.
Conclusion
New Zealand will reopen its borders to fully vaccinated travellers from visa-waiver countries from 2 May 2022, a full six months ahead of schedule.
While it’s not yet on the VTL list, I remain convinced the VTL won’t exist by the time the reopening happens- and if it does, something must have gone horribly wrong!
Anyone planning a New Zealand trip?
Yippee!! Made speculative redemption for 4x SQ Biz tickets to Auckland for Nov 2022 (since appears only destination with availability for 4 SQ BizClass redemptions). So looks good now. Thanks!! Great news!
lucky! i just tried to redeem business class for the first flight out, and it’s advantage waitlist only.
Hmm wonder if this applies to everyone departing from Singapore or just Singapore citizens (like Australia had way back when). I live in Singapore but for sure need a visa to NZ due to my passport…
Visa waiver is based on nationality in most cases, although for selected countries it is based on residency (refer to table in article)
No NZeTA = No leisure travel to NZ. As per NZeTA website:
And then there were three left.
Fortress Taiwan, Fortress HK and Fortress Japan
It’s a great news indeed, hope don’t need to do SHN when back. How about Japan?
VTL will exist? Or won’t. Might be a typo
won’t exist. if my sources are to be believed…
VTL countries , when they can travel ??
Going down late April so hopefully the SHN requirement is gone by then. Funnily enough in the days before VTL, New Zealand was one of the few places from which one could travel into Singapore without the need for SHN (I did). The NZ government screwed up in 2021 and there was no domestic political appetite for a VTL with anywhere; now Omicron has forced their hand.
Hi I am Italian permanent resedent can I trevel to NZ without viasa
if the VTL is still in existence come 2 may, something must have gone horribly wrong!
I really hope you are right!
I was so excited and went to book a trip to NZ with my family for May, after I read the reopening news, only to end up realising NZ is not under VTL list by Singapore. 😅
haha now i am stuck with either waiting for NZ to join the VTL list or change my flight destination/ travel dates.
Omg same situation lol! Hopefully the entire VTL scheme is scrapped by then and Aaron’s sources are to be believed *fingers crossed*
Hi!! Is it possible to transit in Australia and get on a VTL Flight back to singapore? If VTL is still required by then?
if the vtl still exists then, you won’t be able to do that as your 7-day history would feature NZ, a non-vtl country.