Qantas to require COVID-19 vaccination for international travellers

File Pic

Australia's Qantas will insist in future that international travellers have a COVID-19 vaccination before they fly, describing the move as "a necessity".

"We are looking at changing our terms and conditions to say, for international travellers, that we will ask people to have a vaccination before they can get on the aircraft," Chief Executive Alan Joyce told broadcaster Channel Nine.

"Whether you need that domestically, we will have to see what happens with COVID-19 in the market. But certainly, for international visitors coming out and people leaving the country, we think that's a necessity."

Australia closed its international borders in March during the first wave of the pandemic and currently requires returning travellers from overseas to quarantine for two weeks.

Australia's Victoria state, meanwhile, the country's virus hotspot, said on Tuesday it had zero active cases of coronavirus for the first time in more than eight months, putting it on track to effectively eliminate the virus.

Australia's second-most populous state reported zero new cases for a 25th straight day, having imposed restrictions on public movement and shut down large parts of the economy after daily infections peaked at more than 700 in early August.

Victoria accounts for more than 73 per cent of the country's total virus cases and 90 per cent of national deaths. Australia has reported more than 27,800 cases and 907 deaths since the pandemic began.

More from Business News

  • ADNOC Gas signs $3 billion LNG deal with Hindustan Petroleum

    ADNOC Gas and its subsidiaries have announced the signing of a 10-year sales and purchase agreement valued at between $2.5-$3 billion with Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL).

  • H.H. Sheikh Mohammed visits World of Coffee Dubai

    His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, toured the fifth edition of World of Coffee Dubai, featuring more than 2,100 exhibitors and brands from 78 countries.

  • UAE to participate in World Economic Forum

    The United Arab Emirates is participating in the 56th Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum 2026, taking place in Davos, Switzerland from January 19-23, with a high-level delegation led by H.H. Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairperson of Dubai Culture and Arts Authority.

  • UAE-Cameroon Trade and Investment Day explores new partnership opportunities

    Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of Foreign Trade, led a high-level government and business delegation to Yaoundé, Cameroon, where he extended the greetings of the UAE’s leadership to Cameroon’s Prime Minister Joseph Dion Ngute.

Blogs