Government plans for a travel bubble between New Zealand and Australia are now in full swing - RNZ understands the plan is to have it in place by the end of April.
Ministers are actively working on the proposal and the next step would be for it to go to the full Cabinet, potentially this coming Monday.
That will be on the condition there are no community outbreaks of Covid-19 or lockdowns in the meantime.
There could also be an arrangement for safe travel zones with realm countries, the Cook Islands and Niue, which the government have long said would be a priority.
The door has already been partially opened, with New Zealand allowing passengers from the Cook Islands and more recently Niue to come here quarantine-free.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has said New Zealand would continue to work with both countries "for the resumption of two-way quarantine free travel".
Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown will visit here next week, the first leader New Zealand's hosted since last year's first lockdown.
National's Chris Bishop welcomed the news but questioned why it'll still take several more weeks.
The opposition party has ramped up the pressure this week, calling for the trans-Tasman bubble to open up now, to help the tourist industry and relieve pressure on managed isolation.
"It should have been in place already and it's frustrating that it has taken this long to get to this point," Bishop said.
"But there'll be many New Zealanders and Australians who are keen to come home and many Kiwis keen to go to Australia, families to be reunited and of course, tourism businesses will benefit from the bubble.
"So let's get on with it."
New Zealand's hand "has been forced", he believes, after Australia backed out of talks in February.
"So New Zealand has to act unilaterally in the same way that Australia has done towards New Zealand for quite some time.
"Australia has had open travel to New Zealanders, for the most part, since October last year; it's been frustrating to the Australians New Zealand did not return the favour.
"And now of course, the government is doing what we suggested which is that New Zealand open unilaterally and allow people in Australia to travel here quarantine free."
In keeping with the recent yachting action, ACT says "if there is a trans-Tasman travel bubble in place by April New Zealand will still have badly missed the lay line".
"Australia rounded the mark on 23 October last year when it launched a 'Framework for National Reopening' that allowed safe, controlled travel across State borders," ACT leader David Seymour said.
"New Zealand has had plenty of clear air to apply the same rules Australia did for its states to trans-Tasman travel, but unfortunately the crew in the Beehive simply couldn't make the boat go faster.
"As a result many New Zealand businesses are off their foils and in some cases are sinking completely."
Seymour said nothing will have changed in the risk profile of either country by April.
"How many businesses have closed and jobs have been unnecessarily lost because the New Zealand government didn't take on board the Australian framework and said 'there's really no reason we can't be part of this'?"
"This government doesn't deserve any thanks if it finally makes quarantine free two-way travel across the Tasman possible. It deserves to be pilloried for having been a needless obstruction to it happening for so long."