4.2 What happened I aha

4.2.1 ‘Closing’ the border, March 2020 – July 2022

From early 2020, Aotearoa New Zealand began amending the Immigration Instructionsⁱⁱ to refuse entry to people from certain countries, due to soaring COVID-19 case numbers in certain overseas locations. These instructions were specifically to manage the COVID-19 outbreak. They reflected the advice of health officials, who monitored which locations posed the greatest risk according to their infection and transmission rates and also (to an extent) the effectiveness of the public health systems and measures in place there.

On 2 February 2020, the Government announced the first such ban, which applied to foreigners travelling from mainland China. Returning New Zealand citizens and residents (plus immediate family members) and people already in transit were allowed to enter but expected to self-isolate for 14 days. At the end of the month, travellers from Iran were refused entry, and arrivals from northern Italy and South Korea were required to self-isolate soon after. Another category of travellers was refused entry on 14 March when the Government announced cruise ships could no longer enter New Zealand’s territorial waters. Officials kept all such border restrictions under constant review: according to the Ministry of Health, the aim was to ensure they were sufficiently stringent to support the ‘Keep it Out’ approach (covered in Chapter 2), while remaining proportionate.

However, temporary bans on foreign travellers from high-risk destinations did not succeed in stopping COVID-19 from reaching Aotearoa New Zealand. The COVID-19 virus began spreading in the community between early and mid-March 2020. At that point, events began moving very quickly. Over a 12-day period, New Zealand’s first COVID-19 case was reported, COVID-19 became a quarantinable disease under the Health Act 1956, and the World Health Organization declared a global pandemic. On 19 March 2020, Cabinet agreed that the country’s borders would be closed to everyone except New Zealand citizens and residents (with case-by-case border exceptions granted in other specific cases).¹ By midnight, these tight border restrictions had come into effect.

Some strong public messages accompanied the Government’s announcement. New Zealanders and residents who were currently out of the country were urged to return while flights were still available. Foreign nationals temporarily in Aotearoa New Zealand should leave as soon as possible to be sure of getting home. People living here should avoid travelling offshore. And while these measures were necessary to protect public health, they were temporary and would be regularly reviewed.²

For the next two years, the border remained effectively closed to everyone except those qualifying for ‘border exemptions’:ⁱⁱⁱ

• New Zealand citizens and permanent residents, along with their partners, guardians and children (if ordinarily resident in New Zealand, travelling with the person or having a visa based on that relationship);
• Australian citizens and permanent residents ordinarily resident in Aotearoa New Zealand;
• air and cargo ship crew;^iv and
• diplomatic and consular staff.³

Border exceptions^v could be granted to other people on a case-by-case basis if their reason for entering the country was deemed to be critical (the definition of which evolved over time).⁴ From 9 April 2020, arrivals were required to enter a managed isolation facility or quarantine facility on arrival and to hold a valid visa (see section 4.2.1.1 for more on exceptions and visas).

The effect of the border closure on passenger volumes was immediate and dramatic. Typically, Aotearoa New Zealand has more than seven million arrivals each year. Between March 2020 and March 2021, just 165,000 arrived. Alongside this 98 percent drop in arrivals was a 96 percent decline in departures. This rupture in the country’s connections with the world had major impacts on people’s lives and on many sectors of the economy – including international education, tourism and hospitality – and created labour shortages in industries relying on temporary and migrant seasonal labour.⁵

Arrangements for the maritime border, which is dominated by cargo rather than people, were somewhat different from those at the air border. Cruise ships were refused entry for the duration of the pandemic. Under the COVID–19 Public Health Response (Maritime Border) Order 2020 that came into effect on 30 June 2020, most other categories of foreign vessels – including cargo ships, fishing ships and those arriving for humanitarian reasons – were still allowed to berth. However, there were strict restrictions on the movement of crew, the loading and unloading of cargo and catch, and other activities.⁶

In normal times, multiple government agencies share responsibility for controlling the flow of people and goods across the border – Immigration New Zealand (as part of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment), the New Zealand Customs Service, the Ministry for Primary Industries, Maritime New Zealand, the Aviation Security Service, New Zealand Police and the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service. Although the agencies have historically worked closely together, inter-agency collaboration became critical during the pandemic. The Border Executive Board, comprising the six public service departments with border functions,^vi provided oversight and coordination. And as the job of operationalising new and often untested border measures involved the private sector – airports, airlines, ports, shipping companies and others – maintaining close and collaborative relationships with these stakeholders was also critical.

Over the course of the pandemic, policies and measures for controlling the border – and MIQ (managed isolation and quarantine) – were constantly reviewed, adjusted and added to as circumstances changed, globally and domestically.

According to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, initial measures were ‘ad-hoc’ and designed ‘to manage the risk of COVID-19 reaching and being transmitted here, as the rising threat was identified and as the science on COVID-19 developed in its infancy’. But as it became apparent the pandemic would last for more than a few months, the approach to border management evolved. Pressure built to meet the needs of industry and business for critical workers from overseas and to retain skilled foreign workers already here (alongside keeping COVID-19 out), and new measures were introduced to support these goals.

Work on options for reopening the border began early in the pandemic, and there were short-lived periods of quarantine-free aviation travel with parts of Australia and the Pacific in the first half of 2021. In mid-2021, Cabinet signalled that it was time to plan to progressively change New Zealand’s border settings. The elimination strategy had put the country in a unique position, giving it ‘choices and options that are not open to other countries’, the Prime Minister advised.⁷ Under what became known as ‘Reconnecting New Zealand to the World’, border settings would start moving towards a more sophisticated, risk-based approach for individual travellers whereby ‘the restrictions we impose on travellers are proportionate to the public health risk’.⁸ The goal was to allow as many people as possible to enter quarantine-free – supported by ‘ongoing layers of protection’ in the form of vaccination, testing and other measures – until border restrictions could be lifted completely.

The emergence of the Omicron variant at the end of 2021, first overseas and then in Aotearoa New Zealand, significantly impacted this planned approach to reopening the border (see the epidemiological discussion in Appendix B for more detail about the course of the virus during this period). The first step towards reconnection – whereby vaccinated New Zealanders (and others eligible under existing border exceptions) could enter the country from Australia without going into MIQ – took effect on 28 February 2022.

That same day, a briefing to the Minister for COVID-19 Response stated ‘public health advice from the Ministry of Health is that the relative COVID-19 transmission risk posed by international arrivals is no longer higher than the domestic risk of COVID-19, and therefore self-isolation and MIQ are not required for public health risk management at this time’. This briefing recommended removing the remaining MIQ and self-isolation requirements for fully vaccinated New Zealand citizens and residents (and others able to enter Aotearoa New Zealand) arriving from countries other than Australia by 5 March 2022, essentially bringing forward the next stage of the ‘Reconnecting New Zealand’ plan.⁹ It also described the operational complexities of rapidly removing MIQ and self-isolation requirements, such as coordinating the release of around 1,450 people from MIQ and informing staff whose positions would be affected.

While the Government did bring forward the dates for opening the border and removing MIQ requirements, some stakeholders we met with criticised it for failing to lift border restrictions more quickly. We will return to this issue, and especially the interconnectedness of health measures and factors weighing against opening the border, in our lessons for the future.

On 31 July 2022, Aotearoa New Zealand’s borders fully reopened to all travellers and visa-holders from anywhere in the world. All quarantine and isolation requirements were removed.

4.2.1.1 Border exceptions

Throughout the pandemic, people wanting to enter Aotearoa New Zealand who were not citizens or residents^vii could be granted a border exception in specific circumstances. Cabinet agreed parameters for making these decisions on 19 March 2020.¹⁰ Border exceptions could be granted in five categories – those travelling for humanitarian reasons, essential health workers and ‘other essential workers’, citizens of Samoa and Tonga travelling to New Zealand for essential reasons, and people who were partners or dependants of temporary work or student visa holders and normally lived in New Zealand. However, receiving permission to cross the border did not equate to securing a place in MIQ, which remained a stumbling block for many.

By 28 May 2020, 11,842 people had expressed interest in obtaining an exception to border restrictions across the five categories. The bar was high: of those applying, only around 20 percent (2,354 people) were deemed to meet the criteria.¹¹

In June 2020, ‘essential workers’ seeking border exceptions became known as ‘critical workers’, and Cabinet’s original parameters for granting border exceptions evolved into a more specific set of criteria for short- and long-term workers. The threshold for entering the country as a critical worker would remain high, and individuals could not simply apply: their intended employer had to lodge a request first.¹² But with the initial COVID-19 outbreak now under control and the country no longer in lockdown, the Ministers for Economic Development and Immigration advised their Cabinet colleagues it was time to ensure ‘our border restrictions are responsive to the needs of businesses. We need to ensure access for essential workers required for significant economic activities, without whom key projects will be delayed or the economy affected.’¹³ On 8 June 2020, Cabinet agreed that 6-month border exceptions could be granted to critical workers if their employer could demonstrate:

• they had unique experiences and technical or specialist skills not obtainable in Aotearoa New Zealand; or
• they were doing significant work on a major infrastructure project, a nationally or regionally important event, or a government-approved programme; or if their work supported a government-to-government agreement or had significant wider benefit to the economy; and
• the role was time-critical (in other words, if the worker failed to come, the project, work or event would stop, be severely compromised, or incur significant costs).

In order to respond to the large volume of requests and to streamline the assessment process, Cabinet agreed that Immigration New Zealand would decide exceptions under the ‘other essential worker’ category, instead of ministers.¹⁴

The classes of critical workers granted border exceptions increased and diversified over time, in response to the needs of sectors. Over the course of the pandemic, those granted border exceptions ranged from dairy workers, Recognised Seasonal Employer scheme workers, agricultural machinery operators, silviculturists and shearers to veterinarians, teachers, technology sector specialists and auditors.¹⁵

Between April 2020 and August 2022, 39,690 workers were granted a border exception and visa (in most cases, a Critical Purpose Visitor Visa; see section 4.2.1.2). Of those, 17,271 were ‘other critical workers’ and 7,746 were critical health workers. Another 9,924 were workers from the Pacific entering under the Recognised Seasonal Employer scheme. In addition, nearly 11,000 dependants of critical workers were allowed to enter.

However, the number of exceptions granted did not equate to the number of approved workers (and their families) entering the country. As the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment acknowledged, the actual arrivals of critical workers and other border exceptions throughout the pandemic remained dependent on MIQ capacity and the speed with which visas could be granted. Border exceptions during the course of the pandemic totalled 71,334 visas approved, with 57,237 people arriving in Aotearoa New Zealand between April 2020 and August 2022.

The border exceptions regime was phased out in stages from April 2022 as border restrictions were progressively removed. Classes of workers who had been entering the country by means of border exceptions could now apply for entry through standard immigration pathways.

Between April 2020 and August 2022, 39,690 workers were granted a border exception and visa.

4.2.1.2 Visas

Under the Immigration Act 2009, anyone who is not a New Zealand citizen needs both entry permission and a visa (or visa waiver) in order to enter the country. Before the pandemic, Aotearoa New Zealand was issuing over one million visitor visas per year.¹⁶ But during the two years the border was closed, the availability of visas was heavily restricted.

Processing of visa applications of all kinds came to a near halt from 19 March 2020, although people could still lodge some applications online. Offshore visa processing offices closed. Operating at significantly reduced capacity, Immigration New Zealand stopped accepting or processing applications for all temporary visas from offshore, such as those normally available to students and visitors. Resident visa applications from offshore were not processed either. New selections of applications for the Skilled Migrant Category Resident Visa were paused until a new visa category was introduced in 2021 that allowed people already in Aotearoa New Zealand on work visas (and who met other conditions) to apply for residency.¹⁷

With normal processing largely on hold, Immigration New Zealand instead prioritised applications from essential workers and visa-holders already in the country whose visas were expiring. Two new kinds of visas were introduced in 2020 for these groups.¹⁸ In September 2020, the COVID-19 Short-term Visitor Visa allowed people to stay in Aotearoa New Zealand for two months if they were unable to return home because of COVID-19 and their existing visa was about to expire; it meant they could ‘remain lawful’ while making arrangements to leave. At the same time, onshore visitor visas due to expire in the next two months were automatically extended by five months.¹⁹ In June and October 2021, further automatic extensions were made to some onshore visas (Working Holiday and Supplementary Seasonal Employment (SSE)) for six months.²⁰

Public submissions to the Inquiry described the stress and uncertainty some visa-holders experienced over this period. This included those faced with returning to another country where COVID-19 infection rates were high, visa-holders who were out of Aotearoa New Zealand when the border closed and did not know when they could get back in, and some who were in the country and waiting for visa certification but were excluded from government support and welfare while visa processing offshore was on hold. As the border progressively reopened in 2022, normal visa pathways and processing gradually resumed. With the end of the border exemption regime, the Critical Purpose Visitor Visas were gradually phased out. Applications for all work visas reopened on 4 July 2022, and for student and visitor visas at the end of that month.²¹

4.2.2 Quarantine and isolation

4.2.2.1 2020: Establishing and expanding the MIQ system

The first international arrivals to enter a managed facility due to the risk of COVID-19 were repatriated New Zealanders from Wuhan: they spent 14 days quarantining in campervans at a military training centre in Whangaparāoa in February 2020. Over the coming weeks, arrivals from a growing number of high-risk countries also quarantined at New Zealand Defence Force facilities before quarantining at home.

As the global pandemic accelerated, Aotearoa New Zealand’s quarantine arrangements became increasingly stringent. Under a health order issued on 16 March 2020, arrivals from all countries^viii were ‘expected’ to quarantine at home for 14 days. Once the border closed three days later, a second health order was issued which ‘required’ all arrivals to quarantine at home (except aircrew who had used personal protective equipment (PPE)). A third order issued on 9 April 2020 required everyone arriving by air (except aircrew and diplomatic staff) to quarantine at a designated facility rather than at home.²²

This marked the start of the government-run MIQ system that, within three months, saw all incoming travellers being accommodated in 32 hotels across five regions. Until late 2021, most people in the community who tested positive for COVID-19 also completed their required 14 days of isolation in MIQ facilities.

Initially, the MIQ system was coordinated and resourced by a multi-agency team attached to the National Crisis Management Centre. It was led by the Ministry of Health, assisted by the New Zealand Defence Force and others.²³ As the Ministry of Health’s capacity came under increasing pressure, responsibility shifted to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (partly because of its pre-existing role in providing temporary accommodation in response to civil defence emergencies), which became the lead agency from 13 July 2020, again supported by the Defence Force. However, the Ministry of Health remained in charge of health matters, including overseeing the work of the district health boards whose staff carried out testing, health checks and screening in MIQ facilities. The system also relied heavily on staff from the Aviation Security Service, New Zealand Police, the Defence Force, Customs, the hotels themselves and security firms, working either on-site or in support roles such as transport. Ministerial responsibility for the MIQ system rested first with the Ministers of Health and Housing, before the Minister for COVID-19 Response took over in November 2020 when that role was created.

The 9 April 2020 order making quarantine mandatory for air travellers expired on 22 June 2020 after two extensions.^ix It was immediately replaced by the COVID-19 Public Health Response (Air Border) Order 2020, which included additional requirements and stipulated some situations in which people could be allowed to leave MIQ, such as for medical care or court proceedings.²⁴ People might also be permitted to leave if the Director-General of Health (later the Chief Executive of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment) agreed they had an ‘exceptional reason’, and after an assessment of the likely risk to public health. Permission to leave was rarely granted. Pilots, flight crews and marine crews flying in to join their ships were exempt from quarantine to help keep supply chains and transit routes open.^x

A similar order setting out isolation and quarantine requirements at the maritime border was introduced in mid-2020. Most people arriving by sea were required to spend 14 days in isolation or quarantine on board their ship. Exemptions included those who had been at sea for at least 29 days and had no contact with anyone other than shipmates (providing none had COVID-19), and crews arriving by air to join a ship leaving Aotearoa New Zealand immediately.²⁵

At the time the international border closed, an estimated 80,000 New Zealanders were thought to be temporarily overseas, while another 800,000 were living overseas permanently.²⁶ There was no way of knowing how many of them would return home and need to stay in MIQ facilities, making it very difficult for officials to assess the capacity required or likely demand. This difficulty was compounded by the absence of regular patterns to arriving flights and the delay or cancellation of many scheduled flights.

In the first two months of the pandemic, the number of travellers arriving by air was around 2,600 per fortnight. This number was expected to decline over time.²⁷ But by mid-2020, demand for MIQ spaces was increasing, particularly from returning New Zealanders. Mechanisms for either managing demand, or growing supply, were needed. An airline quota system was introduced so arrivals did not outstrip capacity, and officials also began working on an MIQ booking system. More hotels were brought into service. By July 2020 – with nearly 6,000 people arriving a fortnight – MIQ facilities could accommodate 6,261 people (or 4,500 rooms, which later became the measurement of capacity).²⁸

Conditions at MIQ facilities had changed since the start of the pandemic, particularly after security breaches at some hotels. They now had an increased police presence and extra security staff. From August 2020, the Government further strengthened security arrangements and required MIQ workers to undergo regular COVID-19 testing.^xi The New Zealand Defence Force became an integral and visible part of MIQ with more than 6,000 personnel eventually working across the MIQ system, including providing security at the facilities. It was the largest commitment of Defence Force personnel to a single response in more than 50 years.²⁹

Amendments to the COVID-19 Public Health Response Act 2020 ushered in two significant changes to MIQ operations from August 2020. First, this enabled the Government to recover some MIQ costs by charging users (although New Zealanders entering and staying in the country longer than 90 days were exempt, and waivers could be granted in certain other circumstances).^xii The primary aim was to make the MIQ system more financially sustainable, but it was also hoped this would lower demand by discouraging brief visits. Arrival numbers did in fact fall to around 5,000-5,500 people per fortnight from August 2020, leaving some MIQ capacity unused.³⁰

Second, the Government could now require people to register to enter an MIQ facility before they arrived in the country. This paved the way for the online Managed Isolation Allocation System (MIAS), introduced on 5 October 2020. Intending travellers were required to obtain either an online or offline MIQ voucher. The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment emphasised to the Ombudsman (when he later initiated a review of MIAS) that the online allocation system was a ‘minimal viable product booking system’, stood up ‘under great urgency, during a time of national emergency.’ The Ombudsman noted no concerns with the initial rollout of the system, and indeed considered that the Ministry deserved credit for implementing it at speed.³¹

For an online voucher, the traveller would first visit the MIAS website to secure a date on a ‘first come, first served’ basis.³² After selecting and temporarily holding a room for specific dates, they would then complete their flight arrangements through their preferred airline. Finally, they would return to the MIAS system to provide flight details and finalise the booking.

Decisions about emergency allocations were some of the most fraught aspects of MIQ.

An offline emergency allocation system was also created as a way to prioritise urgent and other specific travellers. To obtain a voucher under an emergency allocation, people needed to submit an application to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, who then assessed the application against criteria set by the Minister.³³ A proportion of MIQ rooms were set aside for each of three allocation categories: emergency, time-sensitive and group (the latter could be used for seasonal workers and visiting and returning sports teams, for example).³⁴ From data provided to the Inquiry by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, it is difficult to accurately determine the number of vouchers allocated through the offline system, but it was a relatively small proportion – we estimate they comprised between 5 and 10 percent of all MIQ allocations made from 2021.

Decisions about emergency allocations were some of the most fraught aspects of MIQ, and the criteria were amended through the pandemic in response to changing needs and experience. For example, an ‘emergency’ was initially defined as an imminent threat to life or a serious risk to health. In late 2020, the criteria were broadened to include ‘ensuring a child had care, critical care of a dependent person, the provision of critical public or health services, people unable to legally remain overseas, national security, national interest or law enforcement reasons, and visiting a dying close relative in New Zealand’.³⁵ The impacts of the emergency allocation system are discussed in section 4.3.5.1.

From 3 November 2020, travellers were legally required to have an MIQ voucher before flying to Aotearoa New Zealand.^xiii

4.2.2.2 2021: Pressure mounts

By 19 January 2021, 100,000 returning New Zealanders and other eligible people had entered MIQ facilities (including critical workers and others qualifying for a border exception). For the next six months, demand for MIQ declined. Meanwhile, the Government repeated its calls for New Zealanders travelling overseas to return home.

Quarantine-free travel from (but not to) the Cook Islands began on 21 January 2021, and a similar arrangement with Niue began in March. When two-way quarantine-free travel with Australia – the ‘trans-Tasman bubble’ – began in April 2021, demand for MIQ spaces fell further. With the prospect of reconnection with the outside world now seemingly on the horizon, an eventual relaxation of MIQ requirements also looked possible.

Officials were also providing advice to the Government on options for risk-based pathways for entry into Aotearoa New Zealand, which would have reduced the demand for MIQ spaces. In July 2021 Cabinet approved a ‘Reconnecting New Zealand to the World’ work programme, which considered imposing different testing and quarantine requirements on travellers based on the risk status of their country of origin and vaccination status. For example, vaccinated travellers from low-risk countries would be permitted to quarantine for a shorter period at home, instead of in MIQ.³⁶ Between October and December 2021, home quarantine (instead of MIQ) for a small number of incoming travellers was piloted.³⁷ However, by the time this pilot was completed, it had been overtaken by events.

From May 2021 onwards, repeated COVID-19 outbreaks in Australia saw quarantine-free travel with specific states paused. On 23 July 2021, amid concerns about growing outbreaks of the Delta variant in Australia, the trans-Tasman bubble was suspended completely. MIQ capacity had to be made available for New Zealanders returning from Australia, reducing the number of rooms available for other travellers. At the same time, the growing number of local people infected with the highly transmissible Delta variant (the first community Delta case was reported on 17 August 2021) was also putting facilities under pressure. Until this point, it had been possible to accommodate almost all domestic COVID-19 cases in MIQ facilities for their 14-day isolation. Now it was feared that community cases might overwhelm MIQ capacity – forcing, for example, the cancellation of vouchers assigned to people arriving from overseas.³⁸ Despite this concern, community cases who could not safely isolate at home were still required to isolate in an MIQ facility.

Meanwhile, a new approach to allocating MIQ places via the online voucher system was in development. Earlier in 2021, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment had considered switching to a waitlist system. But the view at that time – partly due to the drop in demand caused by quarantine-free travel – was that the cost, complexity and time required to implement a waitlist system outweighed the benefits.³⁹ In July and August 2021, officials and industry experts again examined alternatives to ‘first come first served.’ This time, they recommended a ‘virtual lobby’ system on the basis this would meet requirements in terms of cost, speed of implementation (a solution was needed urgently), and transparency for travellers.

The minister approved the virtual lobby option, which was rolled out in September 2021. The Ombudsman would later question this decision in his 2022 review of the MIQ allocation system, since the virtual lobby was unable to prioritise travellers on the basis of need. While people with an urgent need to travel could be prioritised through the offline emergency allocations process, the Ombudsman was critical of that process.⁴⁰

The virtual lobby system went live on 20 September 2021. In order to hold an available date in MIAS (and thereby obtain a voucher), a prospective traveller had to first get to the front of a randomised queue whenever a virtual lobby was held. In the first virtual lobby, which took place that month, 31,900 people were in the queue vying for 3,200 rooms; many were still queuing when it ended. Seven more lobbies were held, the last on 18 November 2021.⁴¹ The number of people queuing in each dropped off and some rooms remained unallocated, especially after the Government announced its border reopening plans at the end of November 2021.⁴²

4.2.2.3 2022: MIQ winds down

Quarantine and isolation settings changed with the transition from the Alert Level System to the COVID-19 Protection Framework (the ‘traffic lights’) in December 2021, and again when the Omicron variant arrived in Aotearoa New Zealand (as discussed in section 4.2.1). As case numbers grew quickly, the Government announced a three-phase approach to managing Omicron with shorter isolation periods required in each phase.⁴³ There would be a complete shift to self-isolation for all community cases, with decreasing periods of self-isolation at each phase and wellbeing support for those isolating at home through the Care in the Community programme (see Chapter 6). This was brought into effect on 25 February 2022 by the COVID-19 Public Health Response (Self-isolation Requirements and Permitted Work) Order 2022.

As we have already noted, once Omicron was circulating in the community, international arrivals no longer posed a greater risk of COVID-19 transmission than anyone else; thus, the border restrictions and MIQ were no longer justified from a public health perspective.⁴⁴ From 28 February 2022, vaccinated New Zealanders and other eligible travellers from the rest of the world were permitted to travel to Aotearoa New Zealand without entering MIQ. From 5 March 2022, they were no longer required to self-quarantine at home. On 3 May 2022, the Government removed the requirement of the COVID-19 Public Health (Maritime Border) Order (No 2) 2020 for people arriving by sea to enter MIQ.

On 1 July 2023, the health system resumed responsibility for national quarantine and isolation arrangements.⁴⁵ The MIQ system was rapidly wound down as demand for spaces fell. Defence Force personnel stationed at MIQ facilities returned to their usual duties and the facilities were closed. All but a few resumed their previous function as hotels.⁴⁶

By the end of June 2022, approximately 230,000 border arrivals and 5,000 community cases (and their close contacts) had gone through MIQ during the previous two years.