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Health Alert – U.S. Mission Australia (June 3, 2020)
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June 3, 2020

Location: Australia

Event: The U.S. Mission to Australia plans to send Alerts once per week unless local conditions warrant immediate messaging.

The State Department’s passport printing facilities in the United States remain closed until further notice. As such, the U.S. Mission to Australia cannot process routine regular passports or Consular Reports of Birth Abroad (CRBAs) at this time. It is not known when the printing facilities in the United States will reopen. When we resume processing routine applications, it will be announced via an Alert and on our website. We have informed the Australian government of the reduced availability of U.S. passport services. If you are a U.S. citizen in Australia with confirmed international travel in the next two weeks and you require a U.S. passport, please seek assistance from your closest consulate.

U.S. citizens are encouraged to visit the website of each state and territory for the latest on COVID-19 restrictions (the Australian Capital TerritoryNew South Wales, the Northern TerritoryQueenslandSouth AustraliaTasmaniaVictoria, and Western Australia).

U.S. citizens who wish to return to the United States should make commercial arrangements as soon as possible unless they are prepared to remain abroad for an indefinite period. International commercial flight options currently exist in Australia:

  • United Airlines is currently operating daily flights from Sydney to San Francisco,
  • Qantas is operating a flight from Melbourne to Los Angeles on June 5, and
  • Virgin Australia is operating a flight from Brisbane to Los Angeles on June 6.

The U.S. government does not anticipate arranging repatriation flights in Australia at this time.

As a reminder, there is no quarantine or self-isolation required for domestic travel into the states of New South Wales (NSW) or Victoria. However, travelers entering NSW and Victoria from other states should check the websites of the NSW and Victoria governments. Please also note that the Australian government is restricting Australian citizens and permanent residents from traveling overseas, with some exceptions. Dual U.S.-Australian citizens and U.S. citizen permanent residents of Australia are not exempt from this rule and may be prevented from boarding flights if they do not meet the exception guidelines. Individuals may request exceptions to the exit restrictions at this link.

Actions to Take:

Assistance:

You have received this message because you have registered with the U.S. Department of State’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP). If you would like to unsubscribe or change your details in STEP, please go to https://step.state.gov/step/.