Western Australia has removed a requirement for NSW travellers to quarantine upon arrival but Victorians remain locked out for now.
Premier Mark McGowan says WA will extend its hard border with Victoria until at least midnight on Wednesday.
It comes as the state continues a snap five-day lockdown to combat a COVID-19 outbreak stemming from a cluster of cases in hotel quarantine.
“The chief health officer’s advice is that it’s the correct approach to, at least at this point in time, mirror that lockdown,” McGowan said on Monday.
“We'll make a further decision on Wednesday as to whether to extend it.”
Under the hard border, no one is allowed to enter WA unless they can secure an exemption.
McGowan also confirmed NSW would move to the “very low risk” category, meaning its residents will no longer need to quarantine upon arrival in WA.
NSW has now gone 29 consecutive days of no new locally acquired cases.
Travellers must still complete a G2G travel pass and undergo health screening and a temperature check upon arrival.
WA returned to pre-lockdown life over the weekend with residents no longer required to wear face masks and capacity limits removed from venues.
Metropolitan Perth and nearby regions went into a five-day lockdown on Jan. 31, followed by an additional week of precautionary restrictions.
No community cases have been detected since a hotel quarantine worker inadvertently roamed the streets of Perth while infectious.
The premier, whose handling of the pandemic has earned him record approval ratings, on Monday insisted he hadn’t been briefed on polling which the government commissioned last year on topics including support for a hard border.
He said the polling was conducted as part of a broad public information campaign at the height of the pandemic.
Opposition Leader Zak Kirkup has accused the government of basing its decisions on polling rather than health advice.
