Australia And Philippines Reopen Borders To All Travellers

February 7, 2022

Australia has announced that its international borders will reopen for all travellers including Papua New Guineans from 21st February.

Likewise, Philippines has announced that its international borders will reopen for all travellers including Papua New Guineans from 10th February

For both Australia and Philippines, travellers must be fully vaccinated but do not have to quarantine on arrival. Normal visa requirements still apply. Travel on direct services from Papua New Guinea to Cairns on is still banned by the Queensland Government, presently until 26th March.

Passengers flying into Australia must complete a negative rapid test within 24 hours of scheduled departure. This can either be conducted at the airport, or the passenger can bring a compliant certificate with them issued by a Doctor. A negative PCR test within 3 days of departure is also acceptable.
All passengers flying to Manila must either complete a negative PCR test at the airport, or the passenger can bring a negative and compliant PCR test certificate with them. For Philippines the RT-PCR test needs to be completed within 48 hours of departure.
Vaccination Certificates valid for international travel includes (amongst others) the PNG International Certificate of Covid Vaccination (ICCV) , the WHO yellow card, the Australian Covid-19 Digital Vaccination Certificate, as well as compliant certificates issued by other countries.

The PNG International Certificate of Covid Vaccination is available from PNG National Department of Health (NDoH) upon production of a copy of your green vaccination card and passport either to email: intvaccinecertificate@gmail.com or by visiting the NDoH office- Level 3 Aopi Centre in Waigani.

The Green Card PNG Vaccination Certificate is not valid for international travel, as it does not include either the persons Date of Birth or their Passport Number. Passengers without any valid certificate of vaccination valid for travel cannot be checked in.

Passengers travelling to Australia are required to complete a new “document” being the Australian Travel Declaration/ATD including as part of this an attestation (confirmation) that the passenger is fully vaccinated and the certificate is valid. The ATD is a mobile phone App and available for download at the Apple iPhone Store for iPhone, and Google Store for Android phones. Initial one off entry of set-up information takes about 15 minutes, so it is recommended this is downloaded and updated prior to coming to the airport. Manual paper forms will be available at check-in if required.

Corporate Communications Department
7th February 2022