As COVID-19 infections in China continue to rise, and as concerns grow about the reliability of the country’s reporting and sequencing of cases, more than a dozen countries have announced new restrictions of income on travelers arriving from China at a time when most of them are. on the way out.
Some countries, including the United States and Britain, are reintroducing mandatory pre-flight COVID-19 tests for people flying from China. Others, such as Japan and Italy, are requiring tests on arrival and quarantine for those who test positive. One country, Morocco, has even decided to ban entry to all travelers coming from China altogether in a measure that will come into force on Tuesday.
Read More: China’s Stunning U-Turn on Zero-COVID Takes Xi Jinping From Stifled Control to Callous Inaction
The new restrictions have not gone down well in Beijing, which in a stunning reversal began dismantling its draconian zero-COVID policies last month after a rare public outcry. Chinese state media have labeled the new testing requirements “discriminatory” and a politically motivated effort to undermine the Chinese government. Meanwhile, some public health experts have cast doubt on the effectiveness of these measures. “Trying to ban a virus by adjusting what we do with travel has already been shown not to work very well,” Andrew Pollard, director of the Oxford Vaccine Group, told the BBC.
As China prepares to lift its own border restrictions on January 8, here are the countries that have announced their own restrictions on travelers from the country so far.
Italy
Italy was among the first to announce new entry requirements for travelers arriving from China, with its health minister announcing on December 28 that all airline passengers would be subject to mandatory tests upon arrival. Italy is the first and only European country to require such tests so far. Among one of the first flights subject to testing, more than a third of all its passengers tested positive for COVID-19. On another flight, half of the passengers tested positive.
The United States
On December 28, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that the United States will require travelers arriving from China, Hong Kong and Macau to present a negative COVID-19 test which was done no more than two days before their departure. The new restrictions, which take effect on January 3, come amid growing concerns about China’s lack of transparency about its outbreak as well as its failure to track and sequence adequately the variants in the country.
“Variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus continue to emerge in countries around the world,” the CDC said in its announcement. Read also : The US requires travelers from China to present a negative Covid-19 test result prior to flight. “However, reduced testing and reporting of cases in [the People’s Republic of China] and minimal sharing of viral genomic sequence data may delay the identification of new variants of concern if they arise.”
France
From January 5, the French government announced that it will require travelers from China to present a negative COVID-19 test no less than 48 hours before departure. See the article : US-China relations at 50: learn lessons and move forward. Passengers will also be required to wear a mask during the flight and commit to random tests upon arrival.
The United Kingdom
From 5 January, travelers from China to the UK will be required to show a negative COVID-19 test taken no more than two days before departure. To see also : Mild travel restrictions in China due to Covid are still the toughest in the world. In addition, a sample of passengers will also be subject to testing upon arrival.
“The decision was made to introduce these measures specifically for Chinese arrivals due to a lack of comprehensive health information shared by China,” the country’s health department said in a statement. “If there is an improvement in information sharing and greater transparency then temporary measures will be reviewed.”
Spain
From January 3, the Spanish government will ask travelers arriving from China to provide a negative COVID-19 test or proof of vaccination. For the latter, Madrid said it will accept any vaccine recognized by the World Health Organization, which includes Sinovac and Sinopharm made in China.
About a third of China’s population—more than 250 million people—has not received the third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. The figure rises to 60% for those aged 80 and over.
Australia
From January 5, people traveling from China, Hong Kong, and Macau to Australia will be required to show a negative COVID-19 test taken within 48 hours prior to travel. “This is a temporary measure that reflects the lack of comprehensive information at the moment about the situation in China,” said Mark Butler, Australia’s health minister.
Canada
From January 5, all air travelers over the age of two arriving from China, Hong Kong and Macau will be required to provide a negative COVID-19 test no more than two days before their departure or proof of recent COVID-19 infection. The measures will be re-evaluated after 30 days, according to the public health agency of Canada. Masking during flight will be highly recommended, but not required.
Japan
Japan, which was among the first countries to impose new entry requirements, has since December 30 required all travelers from China (except Hong Kong and Macau) to submit to testing on arrival . Those who test positive will be required to quarantine for seven days.
South Korea
From January 5, travelers from China will be required to undergo a COVID-19 test before and after arriving in the country, the government announced on December 30. South Korea also said it would also limit the issuance of short-term visas for the Chinese. citizens until the end of the month and temporarily stop the increasing flights between the neighboring countries.
India
From January 1, India has announced that it will require travelers arriving in China and Hong Kong, as well as Japan, South Korea, Singapore and Thailand, to provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test no more than 72 hours before departure. . The Indian government previously announced that it would also start randomly testing 2% of international arrivals for COVID-19.
Malaysia
On December 30, the Malaysian government announced that it will begin screening all incoming travelers from China and elsewhere for fever, and will administer those found to have fever or other symptoms with a COVID- 19. The government said it will also test sewage water on aircraft arriving from China in an effort to detect new variants.
Israel
Israel announced on December 30 that all non-Israeli travelers arriving from China would be subject to pre-flight PCR tests taken within 72 hours before departure.
Qatar
As of January 3, all travelers from China must submit a negative COVID-19 test within 48 hours of departure, regardless of their vaccination status.
Morocco
From January 3, all travelers from China regardless of nationality will be banned from entering Morocco. The announcement, which came just days before the ban was due to be imposed, is the strictest measure yet taken by any country in response to China’s surge in cases.
Write to Yasmeen Serhan at yasmeen.serhan@time.com.
