The NSW Government has included the requirement in a proposed new agricultural workers code, despite rural Victoria having a similar COVID-19 prevalence to NSW.
The new agriculture worker border entry permit came into operation at midnight on Friday, September 25.
The Victorian Department of Health and Human Services reports there were 30 active cases in rural Victoria as of September 25. There are no active cases in 40 Victorian rural municipalities.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said NSW would become the first jurisdiction to write the new Agricultural Workers Code into public health orders.
She said the code would allow regional communities to capitalise on this year's bumper crop and enable NSW farmers to be the "launching pad" for the state's economic recovery from COVID-19.
Agricultural workers travelling between NSW and Victoria will need a permit and identification, as well as be required to use personal protective equipment when appropriate.
Travelling workers will need to keep records of their movements, while agricultural employers would need to support them in self-isolating for the first 14 days after entry into NSW and have a COVID-19 safety plan in place.
Advocacy group Dairy Connect welcomed the new NSW Government plan to identify and free-up the cross-border movements of interstate workers including shearers, contract harvesters, fruit pickers and others.
Dairy Connect chief executive officer Shaughn Morgan said the announcement would earn the state government brownie points "by the score" from producers hit by cross-border movement restrictions arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The NSW Government will write a new Agricultural Workers Code into public health orders, paving the way for the farm sector to find skilled workers for the upcoming harvest,” Mr Morgan said.
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