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Fact Box: COVID Rules For Travelers From China Around the World


An officer collects passports from residents for renewal and re-applications at a community police station in Beijing, Dec. 28, 2022.
An officer collects passports from residents for renewal and re-applications at a community police station in Beijing, Dec. 28, 2022.

Countries are imposing or considering imposing curbs on travelers from China amid a COVID-19 surge there after authorities relaxed "zero-COVID" rules.

They cite a lack of information from China on variants and are concerned about a wave of infections. China has rejected criticism of its COVID data and said it expects future mutations to be potentially more transmissible but less severe.

Below is a list of new regulations for travelers from China.

Countries Imposing Curbs

United States

The U.S. will impose mandatory COVID-19 tests on travelers from China beginning Jan. 5. All air passengers 2 and older will require a negative result from a test no more than two days before departure from China, Hong Kong or Macau. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also said Americans should also reconsider travel to China, Hong Kong and Macau.

India

The country has mandated a COVID-19 negative test report for travelers arriving from China, Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong and Thailand, the health minister said. Passengers from those countries will be quarantined if they show symptoms or test positive.

Japan

Japan will require a negative COVID-19 test upon arrival for travelers from mainland China. Those who test positive will be required to quarantine for seven days. New border measures for China will go into effect at midnight Friday. The government will also limit requests from airlines to increase flights to China.

Italy

Italy has ordered COVID-19 antigen swabs and virus sequencing for all travelers coming from China. Milan's main airport, Malpensa, had already started testing passengers arriving from Beijing and Shanghai. "The measure is essential to ensure surveillance and detection of possible variants of the virus in order to protect the Italian population," Health Minister Orazio Schillaci said.

Taiwan

Taiwan's Central Epidemic Command Centre said all passengers on direct flights from China, as well as by boat at two offshore islands, will have to take PCR tests upon arrival, starting Sunday.

Countries Monitoring Situation

Australia

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Australia was continuing to monitor the situation in respect of China "as we continue to monitor the impact of COVID here in Australia as well as around the world."

Philippines

The Southeast Asian country is being "very cautious" and could impose measures such as testing requirements on visitors from China, but not an outright ban, Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said.

Not Considering Curbs

Britain

Britain has no plans to bring back COVID-19 testing for those coming into the country, a government spokesperson said Thursday, when asked about a Daily Telegraph report saying it would consider curbs for arrivals from China.

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    Reuters

    Reuters is a news agency founded in 1851 and owned by the Thomson Reuters Corporation based in Toronto, Canada. One of the world's largest wire services, it provides financial news as well as international coverage in over 16 languages to more than 1000 newspapers and 750 broadcasters around the globe.

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