Where can I go and what is the travel advice for each country?

With the spread of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 in some parts of the world, as well as political instability, some destinations are currently riskier to travel to than others.

The Australian Government maintains travel advisories for 177 countries, with each assigned a Smartraveller advice level of 1, 2, 3 or 4. A higher advice level means higher risk for the average traveller from Australia. 

Smartraveller advice is provided by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The information comes from a range of sources including Australian missions overseas, health bodies, intelligence from overseas consular partners, the media, and feedback from travellers.

• At Level 1, Australians are advised to exercise normal safety precautions as the security environment has been judged to be similar to that of a large Australian city.
• The Level 2 advice is to exercise a high degree of caution and pay attention to the current security and health situation. It doesn't mean you shouldn't go to that location, but you should do some research and take extra precautions.
• Level 3 is where the advice gets a bit more serious, with Australians urged to reconsider your need to travel. That level means there are serious and potentially life-threatening risks at the location, and non-essential travel there should be avoided. 
• The advice for Level 4 is blunt: do not travel. The government has judged travellers to be at high risk of death, imprisonment, kidnapping or serious injury if travelling to that location, and Australians should consider leaving if already there and it's safe to do so. 

Countries with Level 4 advice at the moment include Afghanistan and the African nations the government imposed travel bans on after the emergence of the Omicron variant.

While the hard international border has been relaxed in recent months, it's important to remember not everyone in Australia is able to freely re-enter the country if they choose to leave.

Only fully vaccinated Australian citizens and permanent residents can travel to and from Australia without needing to apply for a travel exemption, as well as some skilled workers and international students.

Exemptions to enter Australia are also available for some people including immediate families of Australian citizens and permanent residents, but many temporary Australian visa holders remain locked out. 

Travellers also need to stay across the COVID-19 testing and isolation requirements required by Australia when returning to the country. 

For the latest information on international travel, see the Department of Home Affairs website.

Graphics by Ken Macleod, Jono Delbridge and Karin Zhou-Zheng.

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