New Zealand's first case of the coronavirus after months has been identified as the South African variant of the virus.

Chris Hipkins, the country's Minister for Health, added that the 56-year-old female patient "probably" contracted the virus from another returning traveller, just prior to leaving quarantine.

The woman, who recently returned from Europe, tested positive on Saturday, 10 days after she completed her mandatory two-week self isolation period, at a hotel in the city of Auckland.

After New Zealand eliminated the infectious virus from the country, this case represents the first time the virus has breached a quarantine facility in over two months.

The small Pacific nation has been widely praised for its handling of the pandemic, with just 25 deaths from 1,927 confirmed virus cases, in a population of five million people.

Hipkins confirmed to reporters that "We can confirm that the strain of infection is the South African variant and the source of infection is highly likely to be a fellow returnee during the person’s stay at the Pullman hotel", adding that genome testing indicates the woman may have contracted the virus from a person on the same floor of the hotel who tested positive two days before she left quarantine.

The World Health Organization has said there is no clear evidence to suggest that the South African variant leads to more severe disease or a higher death rate.