US to allow vaccinated air travellers in November
WASHINGTON: The United States in November will re-open air travellers from China, India, Britain and many other European countries who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, the White House said on Monday, rolling back tough pandemic-related travel restrictions imposed beginning early last year.
The decision, announced by White House coronavirus response coordinator Jeff Zients, marked an abrupt about-face for President Joe Biden’s administration, which last week said it was not the right time to lit any restrictions.
The restrictions had prevented tens of thousands of foreign nationals from flying to the United States to see family members and slashed business travel. The curbs on non-us citizens were first imposed on air travellers from China in January 2020 by then-president Donald Trump and then extended to other countries in the following months, without any clear metrics for how and when to lit them.
The United States will admit fully vaccinated air travellers from the 26 so-called Schengen countries in Europe including France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland and Greece, as well as Britain, Ireland, China, India, South Africa, Iran and Brazil. The existing policy had barred non-us citizens who had been in those countries within 14 days.
Zients did not give a precise start date beyond saying “early November.”
The new policy was announced ahead of the United States hosting leaders from Britain, India, Japan and Australia at the White House this week, and Biden making his first speech at the UN General Assembly on Tuesday.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson called the announcement “a fantastic boost for business and trade, and great that family and friends on both sides of the pond can be reunited once again.”
Americans traveling from abroad who are not vaccinated will need to show proof of a negative COVID-19 test within a day of travel and will need to show proof of purchasing a viral test to be taken ater arrival in the United States.
British Airways CEO and Chairman Sean Doyle said the news “marks an historic moment and one which will provide a huge boost to Global Britain as it emerges from this pandemic.”
Germany’s US ambassador, Emily Haber, welcomed the “Great news” on Twiter, adding, “Hugely important to promote people-to-people contacts and transatlantic business.”
The White House said the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will decide which vaccines qualify, including if those not approved by US regulators will be acceptable. Foreign nationals will need to present proof of vaccination before travel and will not be required to quarantine upon arrival.