New Zealand has no plans to require visitors from China to provide a negative Covid-19 test, saying there is minimal public health risk to the South Pacific nation.
(Bloomberg) — New Zealand has no plans to require visitors from China to provide a negative Covid-19 test, saying there is minimal public health risk to the South Pacific nation.
New Zealand officials have carried out a public health risk assessment including working through scenarios of potential case numbers among travelers from China, Covid-19 Response Minister Ayesha Verrall said Wednesday in Wellington. The work “confirmed these visitors won’t contribute significantly to our Covid case numbers meaning entry restrictions aren’t required or justified,” she said.
The US, Japan and Australia are among countries to have imposed testing requirements on Chinese travelers amid a deluge of cases and a lack of information about how many people are sick or dying. China said it would hit back at nations that placed Covid restrictions on its travelers for “political goals.” China is New Zealand’s largest trading partner and prior to the pandemic a key source of tourists.
Verrall said the prevalent variant in China hasn’t caused significant outbreaks in countries that, like New Zealand, have already been exposed to the BA5 variant.
“So public health measures are not required to protect New Zealanders,” she said.
The government will ask a sample of Chinese travelers to voluntarily submit results of rapid antigen tests to assist in tracking any new variants, and reiterated that any international traveler should test if they become symptomatic after arrival.
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