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Travelers coming from the UK and the EU who’ve been fully vaccinated will be able to visit the U.S. for non-discretionary reasons such as tourism from Monday, November 8.
While we now know that official reopening date, some travelers’ questions remain unanswered. From travelers with mixed vaccine doses to the age limits for these restrictions, here’s all we know so far about the U.S. reopening for tourism.
What Are The Restrictions For Travelers From November 8?
The U.S. travel ban has been removed for fully vaccinated travelers from the 26 countries in the Schengen Area as well as Ireland, Brazil, China, India, Iran, South Africa and the United Kingdom.
To enter the U.S. from one of these countries listed above, you’ll need:
- Proof of full vaccination with ones approved by the CDC or the WHO
- Proof of a negative Covid test taken 72 hours before departure
Officials have yet to release specifics on how foreign national travelers can present their vaccination status upon check-in. There’s no news yet on whether a digital or paper format will be accepted as proof.
To be considered fully vaccinated, travelers must have received their last required vaccine dose at least two weeks before travel.
Will Minors Be Subject To The U.S. Entry Restrictions?
At the time of writing, the vaccination policy for travel will only apply to adult travelers coming to the U.S. When it comes to testing, it’s been the policy since January that travelers ages 2 and up must show a negative antigen test result before travel.
Yes, Travelers With Mixed Vaccine Doses Will Be Allowed To Enter The U.S.
The CDC announced last Friday that mixed vaccination doses will be accepted for travel into the United States. The news came as a relief to many international travelers, including those from Canada, the UK and throughout the EU who’ve received two different vaccine doses. Up until recently, the U.S. didn’t recognize Covid vaccine mixing.
There’s been some uncertainty and worry amongst travelers who’ve been staying at home and waiting to get back out there again once countries reopen. Many people in Europe have been vaccinated with at least one dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine, as well as the Sinopharm and Sinovac vaccines.
“While the CDC has not recommended mixing types of a vaccine in a primary series, we recognize that this is increasingly common in other countries so should be accepted for the interpretation of vaccine records,” a CDC spokeswoman said.
Vaccinations Accepted For Travel Into The U.S.
To clarify things for you, here is the full list of accepted vaccinations for travel to the U.S.:
FDA-approved vaccines:
- Moderna
- Pfizer
- Janssen (Johnson&Johnson)
World Health Organization approved vaccines:
- Moderna
- Pfizer/BioNTech
- Janssen
- AstraZeneca, including Covidshield
- Sinopharm (Beijing)
- Sinovac
“Individuals who have any combination of two doses of an FDA approved/authorized or WHO emergency use listed COVID-19 two-dose series are considered fully vaccinated,” the CDC added.
At this time, the Sputnik V vaccine is still not approved by the WHO. Neither is Covaxin, which is one of the main Covid vaccines distributed in India. The removal of the entry ban for EU travelers will not apply to those who've received the Sputnik V vaccine.
By October 25, the CDC plans to release a contact tracing order that will apply to international air visitors.
Will Proof Of Recovery Be Accepted For Entry?
In some cases, proof of Covid recovery with a positive test result has been accepted for travel. So far, there’s been no mention of accepting a Covid positive/recovery test in lieu of proof of vaccination so this won’t be an option at this time for UK and EU travelers wishing to visit the U.S.
Travel Searches Spike Since Announcement Of Reopening
In other news, flight and hotel searches for the U.S. have significantly increased since last week’s announcement of the official reopening date. A number of travel search engines like Kayak and Expedia announced a spike in searched from travelers throughout Europe, as reported by Reuters.
Read More:
Travel Insurance That Covers Covid-19
Dominican Republic To Remain Open For Tourism With No Testing Or Vaccination Requirement
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