Three new arrivals have tested positive for COVID-19 in managed isolation facilities in the past 24 hours, the Ministry of Health said on Thursday.
No new cases of the virus have been detected in the community.
Seven previously reported cases have recovered as of Thursday, bringing the total number of active cases in New Zealand to 23.
To date, the country has recorded 2257 confirmed cases of the virus.
Since January 1, 2021, 49 of 441 COVID-19 infections have been classified as historical cases, meaning the individuals were not considered contagious at the time of their positive swab.
New border cases
The three new imported cases are currently quarantining in Auckland. The first arrived from Pakistan via Qatar on April 23 and tested positive on day five. They are a contact of another case, the ministry said.
The second travelled to New Zealand from a yet-to-be-determined location via the United Arab Emirates and landed on April 24. They tested positive due to routine testing on day three of their stay.
The third individual travelled from Pakistan via the United Arab Emirates and returned a positive test result on arrival.
The two returnees who travelled from Pakistan arrived in New Zealand before the travel restriction came into effect, the ministry noted.
Last week, the Government announced a new category of "very high risk" countries - which currently comprises India, Brazil, Pakistan and Papua New Guinea - to further bolster New Zealand's defence against the virus.
A country will be initially classified as "very high risk'" if more than 50 cases per 1000 returnees from that nation are recorded this year, and where there are more than 15 travellers on average per month.
Only New Zealand citizens and their immediate family will be able to travel to New Zealand from these countries.
The changes took effect at 11:59pm on Wednesday.
Testing information
To date, laboratories have processed 2,013,539 tests for COVID-19.
On Wednesday, 5340 tests were processed. The seven-day rolling average up to yesterday is 3654 tests.
For a list of testing locations in Auckland, visit the Auckland Regional Public Health Service's website.
For information on all testing locations nationwide, visit Healthpoint.
NZ COVID Tracer
The Government's official contact tracing technology, the NZ COVID Tracer app, has now recorded 2,802,149 registered users, the ministry said.
To date, app users have scanned mandatory QR code posters more than 258 million times and entered more than 9.6 million manual diary entries to document their movements.
Posters have been scanned 752,434 times in the last 24 hours to midday on Wednesday.
In Thursday's statement, a Ministry of Health spokesperson said it's "incredibly important" New Zealanders continue to keep track of their locations, which will provide contact tracers with crucial information in the event of a future outbreak.
"It's incredibly important that people keep a record of where they've been. It can help support contact tracers in tracing potential close and casual contacts of people who have tested positive for COVID-19," the spokesperson said.
"The more we all scan, the safer we'll all be. The data is stored on your phone until you choose to share it."
