Australian Government to charge overseas travelers for hotel quarantine cost
The Australian Government has said that as from July 1, 2020 all overseas arrivals in the Australian State of Queensland will have to pay for a mandatory 14-day hotel quarantine, expected to be around 1,900 United States dollars per person, officials told Xinhua on Thursday.
Queensland is the first Australian state to charge travelers for the two-week hotel stay since the measures were rolled out nationally in late March to stop the spread of COVID-19.
The charging scheme indicates 2,800 Australian dollars (1,932 United States dollars) for each adult, 3,710 Australian dollars (2,560 United States dollars) for couples and 4,620 Australian dollars (3,187 United States dollars) for a family of four, according to the Queensland Government website.
Arriving overseas travelers will not be allowed to undergo the required quarantine period anywhere other than government-designated hotels due to the virus contamination risks.
However, travelers that can prove their trip was booked before midnight of June 17, will be exempted from the new rules.
Before the new rules, the accommodation related cost was solely on the shoulders of Queensland taxpayers with 19 million Australian dollars (13.11 million United States dollars) spent so far and projected to reach 24 million Australian dollars (16.56 million United States dollars) by June 30.
Queensland Government representatives expect the new charging scheme will greatly relieve the financial burden on the Queensland public for those COVID-19 containing measures.
Other neighboring states like New South Wales and Victoria said they will continue to bear the cost of forced hotel quarantine for their own residents returning from overseas, meanwhile, Australian National Cabinet was weighing the option of charging arriving overseas travelers.
Ayooluwa Joshua