Air New Zealand drops vaccination and testing requirement for domestic flights

Air New Zealand passengers no longer need to provide proof of vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test to fly domestically following the country's move at midnight on Wednesday April 13 to the orange traffic light setting.

The change ended several restrictions including indoor capacity limits and the seating and separation of hospitality guests.

Masks will still be required for retail, public transport, flights, and public venues such as libraries.

More importantly for unvaccinated travellers, from today, those flying domestically no longer need to show proof of a negative Covid-19 test if they travel with Air New Zealand.

From May 1, the airline will then remove its 'no jab, no fly' vaccination policy for international passengers.

From April 15, travellers can leave their homemade snacks behind as food and beverage services resume.

Air New Zealand CEO Greg Foran said the changes made sense given the country's high vaccination rates and dropping transmission.

"As Omicron took hold in the community, we put in place several temporary measures aimed at keeping our employees, customers and New Zealand safe. After a careful risk assessment, we feel now is the right time to step back some of those measures," he said.

"New Zealand is moving back towards a sense of normality. We're seeing customers return to our domestic network and we're welcoming back Australians from today. We're aware that Covid is not behind us yet and we have taken a considered approach and will continue to revise safety measures depending on what we're seeing here in New Zealand and around the world."

Foran sent a 'heartfelt thanks' to customers who had supported Air New Zealand through the various changes and restrictions.

Some rules will stay in place and masks will still be required for customers and staff during orange.

The company's domestic flexibility policy, which allows customers to credit or change their flight without fees, will end on April 30.

Jetstar has also dropped its vaccine and negative test requirement and resumed inflight food and drinks on April 5. Similar to Air New Zealand, masks are still mandatory on board.