What you need to know about getting Covid tests for overseas travel

While overseas trips are once again an option, with New Zealand’s borders open for Kiwis, international travel's vastly different to pre-pandemic times.

Finding information about each countries requirements and how you can fulfil them can be confusing, especially when it comes to Covid-19 testing.

Airlines provide some guidance and the international air travel association website details the general rules for most destinations.

On there, you'll find more and more nations are now accepting rapid antigen tests (RATs), as your pre-departure check.

The quick turn around swabs are quicker and more affordable than PCR tests, which can cost travellers in excess of $200.

The Cook Islands is one of the nations that's still been requiring those, but on Friday it announced its expected to begin accepting people with negatives RATs from next week.

Australia began accepting RATs earlier this year.

It's Health Department says travellers need documentation of their test, stating their name, date of birth or passport number, plus the brand, make and date of the test.

It's not as simple as doing the RAT test at home though, it needs to be supervised and signed by an authorised person such as a pharmacist, GP, nurse, pathology collector or trained personnel at airport-based testing stations.

"The RAT must be done no more than 24 hours before the scheduled departure time of your flight," it says.

But it told 1News: "As long as the test result (either paper-based or electronic) includes the mandatory requirements outlined on the Health website, yes it will be accepted. There is no official form or format required."

There's no one stop shop to find out which health providers are offering the service, so it pays to contact a pharmacy in advance - as you plan your travel.

One traveller departing for Amsterdam this week said she was able to get her test through her doctor.

The cost of the service varies too.

In Auckland, a pre-departure test at Life Pharmacy Botany will cost $69, while 10 minutes down the road at Life Pharmacy Sylvia Park it'll cost $85.

Pharmacist Thomas Lai said, "we're getting about a dozen calls a day at least, people enquiring about it."

Competitor Chemist Warehouse is getting 20-40 people at it's airport branch every day, and it's charging just $50.

Aucklander Charisma King, who's heading to Sydney on Friday, said it was the cheapest place she could find.

Ala Kammona, pharmacist manager of the airport branch said, "We figured $50 is a very fair price for the whole process, considering the cost of the kit itself and then just the process it takes, having my pharmacist leave their work."

A man who contacted 1News from Hamilton said one pharmacy he spoke to is charging $20, but that doesn't include the cost of the test kit.

"It’s crazy how much of a mark up some pharmacies are doing", he said.

House of Travel's Brent Thomas said, "That's something from an industry point of view, we'd like to see more conformity around."

He expects supply and demand will help bring things into line.

It's important to remember you’ll need another pre-departure test, to get back into New Zealand.

That too can now be a rapid antigen test, if you can find a location to provide it within 24 hours of your flight home.

In Australia there're several airport testing stations that now provide RATs.

One provider is 4Cyte pathology. It told 1News: "I am pleased to announce that 4Cyte Pathology has opened onsite COVID-19 swab collection and testing facilities at the Gold Coast and Brisbane International Airports."

It charges $77 for a test.

As for pharmacies, the Pharmacy Guild of Australia said, "[travellers] need to check with individual pharmacies."

Tourism groups in Australia recommend travel tests are booked in advance.

Thomas suggests those planning a trip may find it useful to talk to a travel agent, to help them navigate the requirements of overseas travel in the Covid-19 era.

There're potential complications such as your stopover location may have different Covid-19 requirements to your destination.

But he says the complexities aren't putting people off.

"Based on numbers over the last two weeks, I'd suggest people are moving from an enquiry stage to a booking phase, it's incredible how we're starting to see those people now come in."