Effective 5 September, international travellers no longer require a COVID-19 test on arrival — a change owed to Fiji’s community-wide immunisation and low cases.
As announced today, incoming travellers will no longer be required to produce evidence of test bookings to board flights to Fiji or disembark any of our sea ports.
Having welcomed record visitor arrivals in July, with strong year to date recovery, this change adds to Fiji’s increasing competitiveness as a tourism destination.
The Chair COVID-19 Risk Mitigation Taskforce and Permanent Secretary for Economy, Shiri Gounder, shared the critical role of tourism in Fiji’s post-pandemic recovery.
“We expect the Fijian economy to grow by 12.4% this year. This strong recovery is led by the resumption of tourism and our efforts to build a more resilient economy,” said Mr Gounder.
The Entry Test Fiji portal, used to pre-book tests, will no longer accept new booking from 5 September 2022. Travellers with pre-booked and paid in-country tests, prior to the effective date, should undertake the test for their safety and that of the Fijian community.
As current practice, testing providers must honour their bookings and report results to the Ministry of Health and Medical Services. Travellers arriving into Fiji will also need to self-report on a single immigration card.
While the mandatory in-country test no longer applies, anyone who develops COVID-19 symptoms is still required to get tested. Those who test positive will now be required to isolate for a minimum of five days. If they have symptoms after five days, they must complete seven days of isolation. Healthcare workers and aged care facility workers will still be required to isolate for a minimum of seven days, in the event they test positive for COVID-19.
Reducing the isolation period from seven days to five days will greatly assist the Fijian tourism industry. With hotels reporting occupancy at pre-COVID levels, they will now be able to free up inventory — easing the pressure during peak tourism season. This further allows hotels to take new bookings and bring in new spend.
“Our approach to safety is exemplary — we can see that in the growing tourism demand and low positivity amongst tourists. Removing all testing requirements and reducing the isolation period further fuels our economic recovery and eases travel barriers.
This is especially true for markets such as the middle-income North Americans, who we expect more of with Fiji Airways launching the Vancouver route in November,” said Permanent Secretary for Tourism, Shaheen Ali.
This step is in line with best practice among highly-vaccinated societies and follows countries such as Australia, US, UK and Europe.
With these changes coming into effect, the Permanent Secretary for Health and Medical Services, Dr James Fong, reiterated the need to maintain vigilance.
“While we have scaled back our entry requirements, we continue to urge global best practices. Travellers will still be required to get tested if they develop symptoms. Test providers approved to undertake COVID-19 testing should continue reporting results to the Ministry of Health and Medical Services to maintain robust surveillance,” said Dr Fong.
“We will continue to focus on community-wide immunisation to protect our vulnerable population. We are currently looking at an 80 percent booster coverage target for those over 18 years of age and expanding 2 dose immunisation to children so that we get 80 percent coverage in all those 6 years and older. It’s important that our immunisation campaign is complemented by COVID-safe measures by businesses and every individual,” added Dr Fong.
The COVID-19 Risk Mitigation Taskforce will continue to review Fiji’s entry requirements and COVID safe measures, with a focus on fostering social and economic recovery, maintaining border and community surveillance to ensure early warning of future threats, and supporting the mandate for community wide protection through vaccination.
All other existing conditions for entry, including vaccination, remain applicable and can be reviewed at https://mcttt.gov.fj/
For more information, email: crmt@govnet.gov.fj
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