Fully vaccinated visitors to Fiji no longer need Covid tests

ALL FULLY vaccinated visitors to Fiji will no longer be required to produce a pre-arrival negative Covid-19 test prior to entry, a move that reduces costs and lends greater convenience to those travelling to the country, a government statement said last week Friday.

The change applies to all visitors entering Fiji by air or sea who were previously required to take a polymerase chain reaction test or rapid antigen test (RAT) prior to their arrival, reports Xinhua news agency.

The Fijian government said this step is in line with best practice for entry requirements among highly vaccinated societies and follows countries such as Australia and Singapore, which have also removed Covid-19 testing as an entry prerequisite.

The requirement to book an in-country pre-Covid RAT test prior to departing for Fiji remains. The test must be done within 48-72 hours of arrival.

Commencing May 1, the vaccination requirement for entry into Fiji has also been widened. All visitors from the age of 16 must now display proof of full Covid-19 vaccination prior to entering the country. The lowering of the age requirement for the vaccine prerequisite comes as more children globally are granted access to vaccines.

Fiji's key visitor markets have considerably high vaccination coverage among those below the age of 18.

The government said that requiring that all tourists aged 16 years and above provide proof of vaccination prior to visits to Fiji further reduces the risk of community transmission of Covid and allows the island nation to capture a greater percentage of the fully vaccinated tourism market.

All other existing conditions for entry remain applicable.

These moves follow Fiji's continued effort to strengthen its in-country testing programme and wider community surveillance efforts designed to ensure the safety of visitors and Fijians alike.

The Covid-19 Risk Mitigation Taskforce will continue to review Fiji's entry requirements and safety measures, with a focus on strengthening community surveillance and the robustness of the in-country testing digital platform, supplemented by the already high vaccination rates.

There have been no admissions of Covid-19 positive people to hospitals or deaths in the last four days even though there have been 21 new cases recorded this week, according to Permanent Secretary for Health James Fong in the latest update.

Fiji, which has a population of around 900 000, reported its first confirmed Covid-19 cases in March 2020.

It was hit by the second wave in April last year.

| BLESSED with dramatic peaks and sun-drenched white-sand beaches, the Yasawa Islands are the quintessential paradise spot in Fiji. Unsplash