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Officials say development could draw extra tourists as they track WHO recommendation to liberalise immunisation process
New Zealand to ease restrictions to Covid-vaccinated international travelers in 2022
The New Zealand government is to relax current immunisation requirements for international visitors.
Foreigners who are thought to be at high risk of infection with the communicable disease Norovirus can travel to New Zealand under strict conditions until 2022.
Officials have said an increase in number of visits to the country due to the end of the Olympics in 2022 could attract additional tourists.
The leader of the New Zealand Green party, James Shaw, said the move was long overdue. “Now is the time to deliver comprehensive and meaningful immunisation for visitors to New Zealand as well as providing recommendations on vaccinations for current residents.
“There is no good reason why health and safety requirements for visitors should be different to those for residents. Visitors are people like us: what we do on holiday affects us when we return home. It is important that New Zealanders have the same immunisation requirements for international travel as we have for domestic travel.”
A post by Federated Farmers NZ on their Facebook page on Tuesday about the development had attracted 22,400 likes in a day.
Some comments encouraged people to get vaccinated in order to catch norovirus.
The New Zealand government has said the current vaccine for norovirus, called Enterovirus 71, has not been validated by the World Health Organisation.
It claims there is insufficient evidence to justify opening the immunisation process up to international visitors.