5 Sept 2020, Update of SOE Orders. Authorities have caught on to dual New Zealand / Samoan citizens who may be taking short term trips to New Zealand, only to return as passengers on the repatriation flights.
As highlighted by the government Press Secretariat, the updated State of Emergency orders prohibits a person who holds more than one citizenship to use a foreign passport to travel out of Samoa, and returns to Samoa using his or her Samoan passport, for a short term trip.
Dual New Zealand / Samoan citizens are warned to not travel out on the weekly flights to New Zealand for short term purposes, and then make requests to be returned on a repatriation flight from Auckland.
The SOE restriction states, “A person who holds more than one citizenship, who uses a foreign passport to travel out of Samoa, and returns to Samoa using his or her Samoan passport for a short term trip, breaches order 2(2) and is subject to a fine of $2,000.00 in addition to being subject to paying his or her own costs for quarantine as required”.
“A person commits an offence where the person does not comply with quarantine requirements issued by the Director General of the Ministry of Health attracting a penalty of $2,000.00.”
It is not clear if the SOE rules also covers dual citizens who reside permanently in New Zealand, and travel into Samoa using their Samoan passport on a repatriation flight, stay for a short term trip and then return using their NZ passport on the weekly Friday flight to Auckland.
