133 Molesworth Street
PO Box 5013
Wellington 6140
New Zealand
T+64 4 496 2000
2 July 2026
Nigel Gray
By email: [FYI request #34823 email]
Ref: H2026083674
Tēnā koe Nigel
Response to your request for official information
Thank you for your request under the Official Information Act 1982 (the Act) to the Ministry of
Health – Manatū Hauora (the Ministry) on 4 June 2026 for information regarding COVID-19
border restrictions. You requested:
“"I am requesting the fol owing information held by the Ministry of Health relating to the
Government’s COVID-19 border restrictions and their impact on the right of New Zealand
citizens to enter New Zealand.
1. Medical and scientific justification documents
All medical, scientific, epidemiological, modelling, risk assessment, or public health
documents (including internal advice, external advice, briefings, memos, emails, reports,
and assessments) that were used, relied upon, referenced, or considered by the Ministry
of Health to justify restricting or preventing New Zealand citizens from entering New
Zealand during the COVID19 response. This includes (but is not limited to):
the assessed risk posed by returning citizens
the necessity of restricting entry
the medical justification for requiring MIQ as a precondition for entry
the medical justification for limiting MIQ availability
any advice on whether preventing citizens from boarding flights was medical y justified”
The Ministry has interpreted “medical justification” to refer to a matter of public health
intervention.
The situation is described succinctly in the Chief Ombudsman’s opinion on the administration of
the Managed Isolation Allocation System:
While New Zealand was pursuing an Elimination
Strategy, and during the transition to a minimisation and protection approach, the border
provided the first line of defence against outbreaks of COVID-19 in New Zealand. The aim of
the Elimination Strategy was to protect the health system from being overwhelmed, protect
vulnerable communities, and protect the health of New Zealanders overal , whilst also
supporting the economy. These were important aims, particularly in the time before vaccines
against COVID-19 were developed and made widely available in New Zealand.
www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/sites/default/files/2022-
12/Final%20opinion%20on%20Managed%20Isolation%20Al ocation%20System.pdf
In essence, that defines the public health need for the approach, overall. Much of the relevant
information is laid out in the Royal Commission of Inquiry: COVID-19 Lessons Learned Phase 1
Report, specifically chapter 4, and on pages 175-179 there are links to related information.
The (now defunct) All-of-Government COVID-19 website hosted many proactive releases of
referenced documents, so many of the links in the Phase 1 report will now no longer function.
While much of this has since been migrated to the DPMC website, these lists are not completely
comprehensive:
www.dpmc.govt.nz/our-programmes/other-work/historical-programmes/covid-
19-proactive-releases You can still access all the contemporarily released information through web archives (e.g.
web.archive.org):
web.archive.org/web/20230124011418mp_/https://covid19.govt.nz/about-our-covid-19-
response/proactive-releases/
Of specific relevance to your request are the following:
•
web.archive.org/web/20230202071428mp_/https://covid19.govt.nz/assets/Proactive-
Releases/proactive-release/Novel-Coronavirus-Review-of-Temporary-Border-
Measures.pdf Outlines options regarding the restriction of entry and rationale for each.
•
web.archive.org/web/20230207191155mp_/https://covid19.govt.nz/assets/Proactive-
Releases/proactive-release/Self-Isolation-order-under-Section-701F-Health-Act.pdf Paragraphs 11 and 12 explain the rationale for self-isolation.
Please note that this is not a government-maintained archive.
The Ministry released its commissioned reports in 2020 on matters of modelling which informed
the COVID-19 response:
www.health.govt.nz/publications/covid-19-modelling-and-other-
commissioned-reports
The settings of Managed Isolation and Quarantine, including additional model ing have been
released under the Act previously:
•
www.health.govt.nz/information-releases/consideration-of-the-managed-isolation-and-
quarantine-miq-settings
•
www.health.govt.nz/information-releases/consideration-of-the-managed-isolation-and-
quarantine-miq-settings
The Ministry considers this publicly available information to address your queries adequately,
regarding the public interest. Note that the links above are not exhaustive.
If you wish to discuss any aspect of your request with us, including this decision, please feel
free to contact the OIA Services Team on:
[email address]. Under section 28(3) of the Act, you have the right to ask the Ombudsman to review any
decisions made under this request. The Ombudsman may be contacted by email at:
[email address] or by cal ing 0800 802 602.
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Please note that this response, with your personal details removed, may be published on the
Ministry website at:
www.health.govt.nz/about-ministry/information-releases/responses-official-
information-act-requests. Nāku noa, nā
Jan Torres
Manager, OIA Services Corporate Services | Te Pou Tiaki
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