Unvaccinated Air NZ flyers to pay for tests

Unvaccinated Air New Zealand passengers travelling on domestic flights will be required to cover the costs of their mandatory Covid-19 tests, the Ministry of Health has confirmed.

However, unvaccinated Aucklanders leaving the city when the border reopens will be able to get the test they need to cross the border for free.

From mid-December, all Air New Zealand domestic passengers over the age of

12 will be required to either provide proof they are fully vaccinated, or take a Covid19 test and return a negative result within

72 hours of departure. Announcing the policy, the airline initially suggested passengers who required a test could get this ‘‘from either free community testing or their GP’’.

But a Ministry of Health spokesperson said the airline’s requirements for unvaccinated people to have a negative test before they fly ‘‘fall outside of the public health response and must be arranged privately’’.

Testing for this purpose would not be available at community testing centres, they said.

‘‘Anyone who requires a test for this purpose must make arrangements for this themselves and cover any costs associated with testing.’’

The Ministry of Health would not say how much this could cost, as private providers set their own costs.

But it is likely to be a similar price to pre-departure tests for international travel, which are also arranged privately. Prices vary depending on the provider, but around $250 for a test is common.

Air New Zealand said in a statement it had introduced a safe travel policy for domestic travel to help limit the spread of Covid-19 in Aotearoa.

‘‘We are asking customers aged 12 or over to either show proof of vaccination or a negative Covid test and we will accept any form of testing recognised by the Ministry of Health,’’ a spokesperson said.

‘‘As the vaccination rates continue to climb in the country, we expect the numbers of customers requiring a test to travel to be extremely low.’’