Australians desperate to come home can hold on to hope of repatriation, after the government announced 20 more chartered flights not subject to traveller caps.
Acting Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Birmingham announced the plan on Saturday to get more stranded Australians home on flights running between January 31 and March 31.
It came after a decision by major airline Emirates to suspend its services to the east coast.
However Mr Birmingham said the absence of Emirates would not hinder flight availability to the east coast.
"The capacity that Emirates was able to use within the cap will be allocated to other airlines ensuring that there are still as many tickets into Australia after Emirates' decision as there would have been beforehand," he said.
Government-facilitated flights will quarantine at Howard Springs and in states and territories willing to work above the current caps on a case-by-case basis, a statement from Acting Prime Minister Michael McCormack said.
"These flights will bring people back from the United Kingdom, Europe, India and other places where vulnerable Australians are most in need of assistance," he said.
"These additional flights announced today will provide some hope and relief for Australians in vulnerable situations overseas."
The government chartered flights will complement commercial services which are still the main avenue for returning Australians.
Around 37,000 Australians overseas have told DFAT they want to return.
Coronavirus cases around Australia remain low as a single new local case was recorded in Sydney on Saturday.
A western Sydney man tested positive ending a two-day streak of zero cases. Authorities are still to link the case to a known outbreak but believe it's associated with the Berala bottle shop cluster.
States are continuing to ease domestic border restrictions, with Victoria dropping Brisbane's "traffic light" virus risk rating to "orange" from Saturday evening, meaning Victorians will not need to apply for an exemption to return home.
The state is looking to drastically reduce its "red zone" designations on the NSW capital in coming days.
South Australia has also reduced the barriers to entry from greater Brisbane. From Sunday, entrants will no longer have to self-quarantine for 14 days but will have to be tested three times. Anyone arriving in SA from Brisbane from Thursday will not have to isolate or be tested.
Western Australia has assigned a "low risk" status to Victoria. Victorians must still get tested and quarantine upon entry to WA, but from Monday can come without an exemption.
NSW and Queensland residents are still considered "medium risk", requiring an exemption to enter.
NSW has flagged changes to restrictions were possible next week if testing rates exceeded 20,000, and if few new cases were reported. Testing numbers have been well below the desired figure in recent days.
There were 20 new virus cases recorded in Australia on Friday: Three in Victoria, two in WA, two in SA, one in Queensland - all in hotel quarantine. In NSW, apart from the single local case, there were 11 in hotel quarantine.
Meanwhile, two chartered plane-loads of Australian Open players and their support people have been deemed close contacts of positive cases since their arrival in Melbourne on Friday.
Two passengers on a flight from Los Angeles tested positive when they were tested by Melbourne authorities, as well as one individual from an Abu Dhabi flight.
Ordinarily the tennis players would have been allowed to train in COVID-safe bubbles throughout their two week quarantine period, but now, as close contacts they are stuck in their rooms under standard quarantine rules.
The Victorian government said the 47 players affected will get fitness equipment to use in their rooms ahead of the Open starting February 8.
