Some Australians are thought to be exploiting the trans-Tasman bubble to return to their lives elsewhere.
That's because the quarantine-free travel corridor to New Zealand doesn’t involve stopping Australians from onward travel, using the loophole to fly out to other countries. Since last year, before the trans-Tasman bubble arrangement, Australians were banned from going overseas unless they got an exemption .
Tim Byrnes was one of the first Australians to travel on to New Zealand last week, transferring on to Istanbul before making his long-awaited return to Moscow.
"I've escaped," he told the Sydney Morning Herald .
"I get to go back to my life."
The art teacher has been living in Russia since 2016 where he is eligible for residency.
But taking advantage of the bubble doesn’t come without risk after Australia’s Health Minister updated their Biosecurity Act last week. It means that travellers will be asked to justify their travel on compassionate or urgent medical grounds on their return to Australia or the risk of hefty fines and jail time.
Australians who are normally residents in other countries don't need to apply for an exemption to leave.
However Byrnes didn't realise this until he had been in Australia for six days beyond the limit. When he did apply for the exemption, he was refused.
Penalties can include fines up to AU$6660 (NZ$7170) for failure to comply with entry requirements. Meanwhile, failure to comply with emergency determination could set travellers back AU$66,660 (NZ$71,750) in fines, five years in prison or both.
As reported by the Sydney Morning Herald, Byrnes has no plans to return to Australia after his departure and says he's not concerned about the repercussions of him leaving.
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