The Papua New Guinea (PNG) Office of the Controller COVID-19 National Pandemic Response Joint Agency Task Force announced on Feb. 15 new pandemic measures for travel. International travelers are now permitted to visit PNG without pandemic approvals or quarantine as of Wednesday, Feb. 16.
The Commissioner of Police and Controller of the PNG COVID-19 National Pandemic Response has issued new pandemic measures, which are in effect as of Wednesday, Feb. 16. The key changes to the measures are mainly in regards to international and domestic travel, with specific measures as follows:
- Tourists may now travel to PNG;
- Pandemic Approvals are no longer required to enter PNG;
- All persons must be fully vaccinated to travel to PNG, unless they are under 18 years of age or are a citizen of PNG. A person is considered fully vaccinated if they have had the recommended number of doses for the vaccine (1 dose of Johnson & Johnson, 2 doses for all others), within the past six months; or they have had the recommended number of doses for the vaccine and they have had a booster vaccine;
- All persons traveling to PNG must have a valid COVID-19 test within 72 hours prior to their original port of departure. Children aged five years and under are exempted from being tested;
- All people arriving into PNG will be tested for COVID-19 upon arrival;
- If a person has within the last three months tested positive for COVID-19, a medical certificate from a registered medical practitioner from their country of departure, certifying that the person is no longer infectious for COVID-19 shall be accepted but the individual must still be tested prior to leaving their port of departure within 72 hours and be tested on arrival;
- There shall be no quarantine for any person, except for persons who test positive on arrival who shall be quarantined for seven days; and
- It is the responsibility of travel operators to make sure that a person has the necessary documents to board an aircraft/vessel to travel to PNG.
The new measures will remain in place for the duration of the pandemic or otherwise as decided by the Controller.
For more information, visit papuanewguinea.travel.
Canada has also adjusted their entry requirements, and Australia is planning to reopen.
