Overseas travellers may need a third Covid-19 vaccine dose in order to move freely in Victoria. The Victoria’s premier, Daniel Andrews at odds with Australian Prime Minister  Scott Morrison over third vaccine dose for international travellers and detailed the switch on Tuesday while, saying the redefinition of fully-vaccinated will also apply to travellers when it does to Victorians.

 “As far as those who get into the country, and the circumstances in which they get into the country, I think we’ve well established third dose protocols,”  he said.

National cabinet is still awaiting advice from Australia’s independent expert group on vaccination, Atagi, on whether it will change the definition of fully vaccinated to mean three doses of a Covid vaccine.

Andrews has been lobbying for the change for some time and has already mandated the third dose for workers in health and aged care, disability, emergency services, corrections, quarantine accommodation, food distribution and education.

The prime minister, Scott Morrison, on Monday announced the nation would open on 21 February to all visa holders, including tourists, who had received two doses of a vaccine.

When Morrison was asked on Monday if incoming travellers would ever need three doses to be considered fully vaccinated, even if the definition changed domestically, he replied: “No.”

 “It will be two doses … There are various arrangements around the world regarding third doses. And so two doses, the Chief Medical Officer, advises will be sufficient,” he said.

However, Andrews suggested that if the advice from Atagi was to change, so should the federal government’s position.

“I’m sure the commonwealth government will reserve the right to change its view based on advice that comes from experts,” he said.

Victoria recorded 9785 new cases and 20 Covid deaths in the past 24 hours.

There are now 575 infected people in Victorian hospitals, with 72 in intensive care and 30 on ventilators.

Victoria’s pre-Omicron peak for Covid hospitalisations was 851 in October when the state was battling a surge in Delta infections.

In contrast, there are 2068 people in NSW who are in hospital with Covid.