U.S. Will Accept All WHO Approved Vaccines For International Travelers

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Last Updated 3 years ago

The United States revealed last Friday that it would be accepting each of the vaccines that are approved by the World Health Organization (WHO) when international travelers begin to enter the country in the coming weeks. The decision brings some much-needed clarity to the situation, as travelers were kept in the dark for weeks as to whether they would be able to enter the US due to the vaccine they had received.

This decision comes just weeks after the US revealed it would be allowing a wider group of travelers to enter the country than at any other time in the pandemic, and will ensure that letting international travelers into the country is both safe for those living in America and for the travelers themselves. Here's a closer look at the announcement, which vaccines will be accepted by the US and which travelers are set to be able to enter. 

US Widens Entry – Recap For Travelers

The question of which vaccines are acceptable for those coming into the US has been brought to the forefront of the travel conversation following the decision to allow travelers from a wider range of countries to enter the US. For most of the pandemic, entry to the US has been difficult for most travelers due to entry bans, but the increase in the number of vaccinated Americans and the drop in cases has led to the US easing its restrictions. 

The US is set to admit air travelers from a wide range of countries, and is set to permit entry to vaccinated travelers from the 26 Schengen countries in Europe, as well as the UK, Ireland, China, India, South Africa, Iran and Brazil. The US has yet to confirm an exact date from which vaccinated travelers from these countries will be able to enter, though it is expected to be some time in November. 

US Confirms Vaccine Requirements – What Travelers Should Know

Whilst the number of prospective travelers is set to broaden, it is only vaccinated travelers who will be permitted to enter. Following the announcement, many countries had pressed the Biden administration for more information about the vaccine requirement, pushing them to accept vaccines approved by the WHO, as not all FDA-approved vaccines are widely used in some countries.

On Friday, information about which vaccines are accepted was clarified by the WHO to Reuters, ending the mystery after several weeks. A spokeswoman said:

“Six vaccines that are FDA authorized/approved or listed for emergency use by WHO will meet the criteria for travel to the U.S.”

The announcement means that more travelers will now have the opportunity to visit the US once the date of the entry changes is confirmed. The list of vaccines that are approved by the FDA is as follows:

– Comirnaty and Pfizer-BioNTech

– Moderna 

– Janssen 

The vaccines listed for emergency use by the WHO are:

– AstraZeneca

– Sinopharm

– Sinovac

The announcement is bound to have been warmly received not only by international travelers, but by the US travel industry too. Airlines for America – an industry trade group – stated that it was “pleased by the CDC's decision to approve a list of authorized vaccinations for travelers entering the U.S. We look forward to working with the administration to implement this new global vaccine and testing framework by early November 2021.” More information about the exact requirements are expected to be released in due course.

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