![HOPE: South Australia premier Steven Marshall said South Australia will open its border to Victoria on December 1. HOPE: South Australia premier Steven Marshall said South Australia will open its border to Victoria on December 1.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/matthew.currill/065a35e9-9405-49cd-b7c3-edbfe25b500e.jpeg/r0_438_4288_2849_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
South Australia will re-open to Victorians in the coming weeks.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
The lifting of restrictions from midnight on December 1 means any Victorian can enter the state freely and will not have to quarantine.
The news will be welcome relief to cross border community members who have had to apply for exemption permits and comply with weekly COVID tests.
"It's impossible to say, hard and fast that there will not be any deviation from this, because what we don't know is whether there is going to be an outbreak," South Australian premier Steven Marshall said.
"But, when we look at how Victoria has gone and when we look at the approach that they're taking, not by just removing all the restrictions immediately, it gives us great confidence.
"We have an excellent working relationship between Victoria's health authorities and SA health. There's a very good exchange of data now and that gives us great confidence that (Victoria) will continue to have this very, very good performance."
The announcement comes as Victoria's rolling coronavirus average has plummeted to zero after recording 14 days of no new COVID-19 infections or deaths.
South West Coast MP Roma Britnell welcomed the news, stating the border closure "had a huge impact on people living in her electorate who had been separated from loved ones living in South Australia because of the closure".
"The border closure has been one of the biggest issues my team and I have been dealing with during the second-wave of the pandemic," she said.
"I'm very pleased there is light at the end of the tunnel for people who have been impacted by this closure.
"I'm sure it will be a very happy Christmas for families who were separated, and it will be a welcome return to normal business for Victorians who also offer services into South Australia."
Ms Britnell said during the course of the closure she had spoken with SA Premier Steven Marshall a number of times and had worked closely with the Victorian cross-border commissioner to ensure critical industries could continue to operate and to assist people obtain permits to cross into South Australia.
Have you signed up to The Standard's daily newsletter and breaking news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in the south-west.