The government is pushing to establish a vaccinated travel lane (VTL) with Australia, a major source of foreign tourists, as part of Indonesia’s plan to recover its tourism.

Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Sandiaga Uno said on Tuesday that under the proposed VTL, the government would cut down the quarantine period from five days to three days for fully vaccinated Australian travelers.

However, travelers are required to show evidence of having received at least two vaccine doses,  health insurance that covers COVID-19 treatment abroad and a negative PCR test result.

He added that there were no specific requirements for inbound Australian travelers at the moment, but the government would continue monitoring the pandemic situation in Australia.

“We’re in a discussion to reopen direct flights from Australia,” he said during an online press briefing on Monday.

The minister’s explanation comes two days after President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo announced the proposal of the VTL to Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison during a meeting on Oct. 30 in Rome at the sidelines of the Group of 20 (G20) Summit, according to a press release.

Jokowi noted that the proposal included a mutual acceptance of both countries’ vaccination certificates.

Popular

PDI-P will likely be part of opposition: Ganjar

Indonesia one step from Olympics after beating South Korea

Bahlil leads task force to boost sugar, bioethanol production in Papua