New Zealanders in the Middle East should attempt to leave by road or commercial flights as soon as it is safe to do so, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) said.
The government was working "around the clock" on plans to assist Kiwis stranded in the region, an MFAT spokesperson said.
Efforts were focused on overland options to support New Zealanders to leave Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait.
Government working 'around the clock' to help New Zealanders stranded in Middle East
Royal New Zealand Air Force C-130J Hercules prepares to leave for the Middle East on 7 March.
MFAT had contacted New Zealanders in those countries who had expressed interest in government-assisted departure, but support provided would depend on factors, including the security environment and cooperation of foreign governments, the spokesperson said.
MFAT warned that travel disruption has now extended well beyond the region.
Airlines that normally transit Middle East airspace to connect Europe and Asia faced significantly longer routes and higher fuel costs, which had been compounded by Russian and Ukrainian airspace also being closed to most airlines.
For those countries where the airspace remained closed, MFAT advised sheltering in place and following the advice of local authorities at all times.
This included ensuring enough food and water supplies, torches, batteries, and medications.
Commercial airlines were increasing the number of flights operating and were the fastest way for New Zealanders to get home, MFAT said.
By Monday morning, 3694 New Zealanders had registered as in the region via the Safe Travel site.
A MFAT spokesperson said the majority (2213) were in the United Arab Emirates. Around 900 New Zealanders have registered from Qatar and Saudi Arabia combined, and 121 in Egypt.
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Less than 100 Kiwis were in each of Kuwait, Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories, Bahrain, Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon and Oman, and 36 in Iran.
MFAT said its ability to assist New Zealanders in Iran was extremely limited.
The Embassy in Tehran, which closed in mid-January, would remain closed until further notice.
New Zealanders in Iran needing support should contact the consular emergency line or the New Zealand Embassy in Turkey.
The Safe Travel site reported Qatar's Civil Aviation Authority (QCAA) had announced the partial re-opening of airspace and some resumption of flights out of Doha.
The services would operate on designated contingency routes with limited capacity, and with the support of Qatar's Armed Forces, allowing for airline-run evacuation flights.
Qatar Airlines had been in direct contact with customers to offer this option, MFAT said.
"We strongly encourage New Zealanders who want to leave Qatar, particularly those who have existing bookings with Qatar Airways, to urgently contact your airline and travel agent to seek further information. "
There was one commercial flight scheduled to leave Doha on Monday, travelling to Perth.
There could be long delays getting through to airlines, given very high demand, but people should stay on the line until answered and use official channels like chat or call centres, not social media, MFAT said.
All airlines and airports continued to stress that passengers should not proceed to the airport unless their airline has confirmed their specific flight is operating.
It urged people to register via the Safe Travel website, to check the website and Facebook for any updates, and to avoid government buildings, military sites and facilities, such as energy infrastructure, including oil production facilities and US Embassies, which could be targeted in military strikes.
Two Defence Force Hercules are in the region and poised to assist if commercial flights become unavailable, a MFAT spokesperson said.
One departed from Whenuapai on Saturday, and another was being redirected to the Middle East from Asia.
On the weekend, Defence Minister Judith Collins said she could not provide specific routes, timings or destinations for security reasons, but that if evacuations took place, the planes would bring people to safer locations where they could board commercial flights back to New Zealand.
