Australia's international borders have been largely closed to non-citizens and non-residents since March last year.
The federal government recently extended the existing emergency period by three months until the 17th of June 2021, meaning international travel will remain off-limits for those who don't qualify for an exemption until the middle of the year, at the earliest.
Will the country reopen now that the vaccine is being rolled out?
Many Australians are hoping the rollout of the vaccine will be enough for the country to re-open to the rest of the world, but will it?
Well, not exactly.
A Department of Health spokesperson says the government's expectation is that while COVID-19 continues to pose a significant threat to public health around the world, people coming to Australia will need to undertake what they call "appropriate risk mitigations".
While that strategy includes immunisations, they say the government doesn't view vaccination as a complete solution, but rather a supplementary measure.
When can we expect international travel?
Given the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 situation around the globe, it's hard to put a date on it.
According to Adrian Leach, chief executive of travel risk management insurer, World Travel Protection, he doesn't think it will really be possible until the first quarter of 2022.
He points to comments made earlier this year by Federal Health Department Secretary, Professor Brendan Murphy, who suggested overseas travel won't fully open up for Australians until next year.
Experts like Dr Fiona Stanaway, clinical epidemiologist from the University of Sydney's School of Public Health say it's likely Australia will open up to some countries before others.
She expects countries with little to no local transmission, like Taiwan, will be higher on the list than nations that have performed badly.
Vaccine passport
In order to allow people to travel overseas with low risk, many airlines will be implementing a so-called "no jab, no fly" policy meaning everyone who boards an international flight must have received a COVID-19 vaccine.
But how will they prove it? That's where the concept of a vaccine passport comes in.
Mr Leach explains.
"It's a presentable document to help an individual prove that they've either been tested, or vaccinated for COVID-19 in the situation. Now that could be manual or digital. In a digital format, there would be a digital wallet on your phone or smartphone, or the alternative system would be the yellow vaccination passports that have been around for some time, that you carry around which have been signed off by a doctor to say you've had that vaccination."
A Department of Health spokesperson says details of how a vaccine passport might work in Australia are still being developed.
The World Heath Organisation is expected to release its global guidelines on what a vaccination passport would look like in May this year.
Several types of vaccine passports are already under development.
The International Air Transport Association [[IATA]], which represents 290 carriers worldwide, is working on a digital health pass that would show the passenger’s testing and vaccination status.
Air New Zealand will begin trialling the app on flights between Auckland and Sydney in April.
Dr Chrystal Zhang from R-M-I-T University explains how the software will work.
"They would link that information from the trusted vaccine providers, so those hospitals or clinics who have the information about the individual traveller's vaccine history or results, to be transferred to IATA's software, the app. And then that would be accessible by the airline people, so that when the traveller books their ticket, then the airline would be able to use that app to check and verify whether this traveller has (had) the vaccine."
However, there are privacy concerns over how the software stores the information it collects and a concern about how fair it would be.
Will fully-vaccinated travellers still need to quarantine when they arrive in Australia?
The short answer is yes, at least in the meantime.
A Department of Health spokesperson says "mandatory quarantine with COVID-19 testing at frequent intervals has been a key pillar of Australia's response" to the pandemic.
But should favourable data on vaccination continue to be published over time, they say it could trigger a decision to scale back other public health interventions.
So should I start booking flights to or from Australia?
Qantas says it's planning to resume regular international passenger flights to most of its pre-COVID destinations from the 31st October 2021, when the federal government expects its vaccination program will be complete.
But experts warn to wait a bit longer before booking a ticket, with the global coronavirus situation still so uncertain.
Experts add people should assess whether there's really a need for their trip and that travellers should make sure they're well-prepared.
