Australia's Cabinet has agreed to halve the number of people allowed into Australia each week and to set up vaccination targets.
Radio NZ reports by 14 July, international arrivals will be capped at 3,035 people a week, down from 6,370 and will be in place until at least the start of next year.
Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison said if the medical advice on the caps changed, National Cabinet would consider changing the caps sooner.
There are no details, though, on how many extra flights will be provided.
The move is a win for the Victorian, Queensland and West Australian governments, who were calling for a significant reduction to the passenger caps until a larger share of the population is vaccinated.
He also announced the federal government, based on medical advice, would conduct a trial of a shorter seven-day quarantine period with a small number of vaccinated travellers, instead of 14 days.
Morrison said South Australia had flagged its willingness to work with the government on the trial.
He said new quarantine arrangements for vaccinated travellers would also then be introduced, based on the outcomes of the trial in South Australia.
Australia's Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly said testing had shown seven days of home quarantine "can be very similar to the outcome of 14 days' hotel quarantine".
New Zealand's Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said there was no implication for the trans-Tasman travel bubble based on the announcement.
He said New Zealand was already undertaking similar policy work to reconnect to the world.
Towards the end of this year, when New Zealand's vaccination campaign was further rolled out, he said the government would be in a position to announce further decisions around New Zealand's border settings and restrictions.
[Source: RNZ/ABC]
