Update On Managed Isolation Voucher Availability

Air Commodore Darryn Webb, Head of Managed Isolation and Quarantine:

One week into the Managed Isolation Allocation System (MIAS) becoming compulsory, experience with the new system and changes in traveller’s plans have enabled additional space to be made available in New Zealand’s Managed Isolation facilities.

On 3 November using the online Managed Isolation Allocation System (MIAS) to secure a place in managed isolation before coming to New Zealand became compulsory. MIAS helps us manage the timing of people entering New Zealand so we can guarantee their place in a managed isolation facility, which is necessary to keep them and all New Zealanders safe.

Everyone arriving in New Zealand is now required to present a voucher to airlines in order to board their flight, or have a special exemption from using the system.

Vouchers becoming available again when traveller’s plans change

The complex nature of international travel during this global pandemic is seeing widespread disruption to flight schedules, affecting travel plans for those with vouchers for managed isolation facilities.

As people’s plans change, they find their vouchers are no longer required so we’re starting to see a limited number of vouchers becoming available again because of travellers plans being impacted.

A number of vouchers are also becoming available when they are reserved but not confirmed within 48 hours. For example, on a single day in December there were more than 300 vouchers returned to the system for this reason. This re-release will ensure these rooms don’t go to waste.

We want Kiwis to be able to get home for the holiday period so if there are people with vouchers they won’t be using we ask them to please go onto the MIAS website and cancel their booking as soon as possible so that someone else can get home. If a flight is cancelled for example, if people do not cancel their vouchers we are unable to allocate their space in managed isolation to someone else – so it goes to waste.

More rooms to be made available per day during December 
The MIAS system has been designed to be dynamic to allow for spikes in demand. Following a rapid spike in demand recently we needed to be sure that demand wouldn’t outstrip supply, so we set aside a number of spaces to guard against that.

That spike has now receded and with a week’s worth of data we’ve been able to make about 100 rooms a day available again from 13-23 December. The vouchers for these rooms will be released daily into the MIAS system on a ‘first in, first served’ basis and are available now.

Flying around the world right now is not simple or easy so we anticipate more vouchers will come online from time-to-time so people should check in regularly to see if space has opened up on their preferred dates.

The key thing for people to understand is ‘no voucher – no fly’. If you don’t have a voucher, do not go to the airport because you will not be allowed to board a plane to New Zealand without one.

New Zealanders made considerable sacrifices during the nation’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic to get to where we are today. We now ask those travelling here to do their part by using MIAS to book a voucher and secure their place in a managed isolation facility.

People should visit the website to check availability and secure their place in managed isolation, before booking flights.

Latest numbers

· Since 5 October when MIAS began operating, 36,537 passengers have secured an allocation to a managed isolation facility.

· 24,377 vouchers have been provided, noting that 1 voucher can cover up to 12 people travelling as either a couple, family or travel party who wish to isolate together.

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