The test is done by polymer chain reaction. Nasopharyngeal swabs and sputum (if available) are tested. Polymer chain reaction works by replicating strands of DNA particles that match a known starter sequence (called a primer) specific to the virus. As long as you have the primer for your PCR machine you are good to go. The technology has been around for quite some time and most Hospital labs in major metropolitan hospitals have one. An industrial country like Australia would have numerous labs across the country that can test for it. For smaller countries they probably engage labs at a near by bigger country. It will take longer for results but you should be able to get them back in a few days worst case.
Turn around time in the US has been improving as the CDC sent primer kits to all major labs and I believe regulations are being relaxed so that major hospitals can test on site if they have the correct equipment.
RT-PCR can be very variable with false positives and negatives.
I think by now it has been validated here and ought to be reliable when done by experienced technicians.
I heard in other countries there was as much as 30% error rate.
From wikipedia Biography Wikipedia Kary Mullis Bio":
"In 1983, Mullis was working for Cetus Corporation as a chemist.[10] Late one night while driving with his girlfriend, who was also a chemist at Cetus, he had the idea to use a pair of primers to bracket the desired DNA sequence and to copy it using DNA polymerase; a technique that would allow rapid amplification of a small stretch of DNA and become a standard procedure in molecular biology laboratories.[10] Cetus took Mullis off his usual projects to concentrate on PCR full-time.[10] Mullis succeeded in demonstrating PCR December 16, 1983.[10] In his Nobel Prize lecture, he remarked that the success did not make up for his girlfriend breaking up with him. "I was sagging as I walked out to my little silver Honda Civic. Neither [assistant] Fred, empty Beck's bottles, nor the sweet smell of the dawn of the age of PCR could replace Jenny. I was lonesome."[10] He received a $10,000 bonus from Cetus for the invention."