The National Immigration Agency has sanctioned Air New Zealand for an error that left three passengers stranded in Taiwan’s Taoyuan International Airport.
Taiwan is barring entry to foreign visitors as part of its efforts to stop the spread of COVID-19. It has also recently banned travelers from using its airports for layovers.
However, due to an error by Air New Zealand ground staff, two Japanese nationals and a British national were allowed onto a flight from Auckland to Taipei on Thursday.
When these passengers arrived in Taiwan, they found themselves stranded in the airport terminal. Barred from passing through immigration and unable to return to Auckland, they stayed in the terminal overnight.
The National Immigration Agency says that the three foreign nationals were later exempted from the ban on transiting passengers. The British man was later able to board a flight to Shanghai, while the two Japanese citizens boarded a flight to Osaka.