Australia's border has been almost entirely sealed for 18 months, but today it became clearer the end is in sight and changes are afoot for international travel next month.

For vaccinated people, a fortnight of hotel quarantine will be out and a shorter stretch of home quarantine will be in, while Australia's getting ready to welcome international guests by recognising some vaccines available overseas.

It's expected that international flights will ramp up significantly from November, with NSW likely the first state off the rank.

Here's what we know.

How will the open border work? Are all travel restrictions done for?

Not quite.

The changes announced by the Prime Minister mean that there will no longer be a cap on arrivals to states that hit an 80 per cent double vaccination target.

That's the same target each state and territory is working towards to restore a range of freedoms. 

From the federal government's perspective, there would be no limit on the number of people allowed into a state from overseas, and 14-day hotel quarantine would only be for unvaccinated travellers or those who've received a vaccine not recognised in Australia.

Instead, citizens and permanent residents who are fully vaccinated with an approved vaccine will be able to isolate at home for just seven days, as will kids under 12 and people who have a medical exemption from vaccination.

The federal government said NSW was likely to be the first state to allow this to happen, sometime in November.

What about the other states?

Things get a little hazier here, in part because it's not clear if all states — particularly Queensland and Western Australia — want to allow overseas arrivals at 80 per cent.

In an effort to get as many Australians home as possible, the federal government is offering to facilitate flights into any state or territory that agrees to begin trialling home quarantine.

Asked about it this morning, before the Prime Minister's announcement, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said she had not been consulted and would not agree to a plan that would let more people into the state without seeing the detail.

Ms Palaszczuk has previously resisted calls that she commit to opening Queensland's domestic border when the state hits 80 per cent double doses.

You can see how far away your state is from an 80-per-cent double dose rate here.

What will travel look like? Where can I go?

The changes would see unlimited commercial flights once a state hits the 80 per cent benchmark.

As part of the new deal allowing fully vaccinated Australians to travel more freely, the government says testing will likely be a part of international travel — including with the use of rapid antigen tests, which can give a result in just a few minutes.

Both Qantas and Virgin have revealed the first lot of international routes that will restart when the border opens. 

The list of potential destinations includes:

• The UK
• New Zealand
• The US
• Hong Kong
• Japan
• Singapore
• Canada
• Fiji
• Bali

But it's important to note restrictions overseas are subject to change and you'll need to keep across the rules in your destination if you choose to leave Australia.

According to Mr Morrison, an "internationally recognised proof of vaccination document" will be accessible to Australians looking to leave the country and demonstrate their vaccination status.

The government is also hoping to further explore completely quarantine-free travel with countries like New Zealand.

What will home quarantine look like?

There could be an app for it. 

In SA and NSW, an app is being trialled that helps to ensure people are complying with home quarantine.

It uses facial recognition and geolocation to check whether you're in the place you're supposed to be and also provides a testing schedule and symptom checker. 

Random in-person police checks are also conducted in the trials.

Home quarantine is nothing new for much of Australia — isolation at home is common after people are identified as a close contact of a COVID case and home quarantine has been instituted for international arrivals before, at the start of the pandemic before hotel quarantine was devised.

What's this about approved vaccines?

So far, Australia hasn't had to worry too much about which vaccines people in other parts of the world have been taking.

But to allow travel from countries like India and China (each of which are a huge international student market), the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) has announced that it will recognise the Sinovac and Covishield vaccines.

That doesn't mean you'll be able to access those vaccines in Australia, but people overseas who've received those formulas will qualify as fully vaccinated. 

Australia already recognises AstraZeneca, Johnson and Johnson, Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, and the TGA will continue to consider other vaccines for recognition.

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