More and more countries are requiring travelers to produce negative coronavirus test results before they board flights. Among the latest countries to join the list is Turkey, which has declared that until March 1, 2021, it will ask anyone landing in the country to show a negative coronavirus test. Belgium and the Netherlands are also on the list.
The Dutch government has announced that, from December 29, anyone aged over 13 landing in the country, including Dutch citizens, will be required to show a negative coronavirus test result from a test carried out 72 hours before the flight. The Dutch government also recommends all arrivals to isolate themselves for ten days.
The US also announced recently that all arrivals from the UK would have to show a negative test result on entering the US. Cuba now also has a similar requirement for all arrivals. Several countries have had such a requirement for a while, including the UAE, where an additional test is carried out immediately after a passenger lands.
Greece too requires a negative coronavirus test result for those seeking to enter the country, and those arriving from the UK are now required to remain in isolation for ten days and to undergo two further tests - one on landing and the second after nine days.
What of Israel? So far, the government has not changed its requirements for people arriving in the country, and it does not require production of a negative coronavirus test as a condition of entry. Since last week, all arrivals have been required to be isolated in state-run hotels, but most arrivals have reportedly been directed to self-isolate. Only 2,000-3,000 hotel rooms are available, far fewer than the number of people landing in the country. In addition, in order to encourage arriving travelers to undergo coronavirus testing after they land, and to shorten their isolation period from fourteen days to ten, since last week they have been allowed to undergo testing gratis at the Check2Fly stands at Ben Gurion Airport. The test is not compulsory, but the response has been high, and thousands of travelers are choosing to undergo testing immediately on landing in Israel.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on December 27, 2020
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