The ACT Is Scrapping the Last of Its Border Restrictions with New South Wales
Come 3pm on Friday, January 29, there'll no longer be any travel restrictions in place for travel to the ACT — from NSW, or from any other state or territory.
Among the many challenges that Australians have faced over the past year, our love of travel has been hit hard — including in our own backyard. Domestic border restrictions keep changing with frequency in response to new cases and clusters in different states, meaning that planning a holiday beyond your own city has been more than a little tricky. And if COVID-19 outbreaks keep happening, this situation may continue for the foreseeable future.
If you're a New South Wales resident who's keen to take a trip to the Australian Capital Territory sometime soon, however, some good news has just arrived. The ACT has had various levels of border restrictions with Greater Sydney, the Central Coast and Wollongong since before Christmas, all in response to the northern beaches cluster — but, when 3pm rolls around today, Friday, January 29, no restrictions will remain in place.
At the moment, thanks to the ACT Government's previous easing of border limits throughout the January, most restrictions with NSW have already been limited. But today's move will affect the Cumberland local government area, the only NSW region still classed as 'COVID-19 affected' by the ACT. So, folks who've been in that specific region will be able to enter the ACT again.
The loosened rules cover both ACT residents and non-residents — and, whichever category you fall into, you'll be able to travel to the ACT without a declaration or quarantining.
That said, the Cumberland and Blacktown local government areas will still remain on the state's list of geographical areas of risk, which means that anyone who has been in either area shouldn't visit or work in a high-risk setting — such as a hospital, other healthcare facilities or a residential aged care facility — for 14 days after leaving the area.
For further details about the ACT's border restrictions, head to the territory's COVID-19 hub.
For more information about the status of COVID-19 in NSW, head to the NSW Health website.
