US to relax travel restrictions for vaccinated visitors starting November Blog
Vacations in the US are back.
Fully vaccinated Covid-19 travellers will be able to fly to the US from November, the Biden administration has announced.
The relaxing of rules, which has been praised by governments around the world, brings an end to the travel bans first imposed by former president Donald Trump 18 months ago.
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Jeff Zients, coronavirus response coordinator for President Joe Biden, told reporters the new “consistent approach” would take effect in “early November”.
“This new system allows us to implement strict protocols to prevent the spread of Covid from passengers flying internationally to the United States. Requiring foreign nationals travelling to the United States be fully vaccinated is based on public health,” he said.
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“This is based on individuals rather than a country-based approach.”
All foreign travellers heading to the US will need to show proof of vaccination before boarding their flight, as well as proof of a negative Covid-19 test taken 72-hours prior to arrival.
It is unclear which vaccines will be accepted by the US, however, some analysts have predicted that China’s Sinopharm and Russia’s Sputnik V will not make the list.
On Tuesday, the country’s chief coronavirus adviser Dr Anthony Fauci, suggested the United State’s will recognise the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine for visitors.
“Given we have a substantial amount of information on the AZ vaccine . . . I would predict it would not be a problem,” he said.
The Biden administration did not give a precise start date for the new rules beyond saying “early November,” and many details of the new policy are still being decided.
