U.S. Will Lift Travel Ban For Fully Vaccinated Travelers
Gabriela Ungo • September 20, 2021
Biden Administration to Lift Bans on Vaccinated International Travelers in November 2021
Today, Jeff Zients, White House’s COVID-19 pandemic coordinator, announced that the Biden Administration will lift travel bans starting in early November, on foreign nationals who are fully vaccinated against the coronavirus. Air passengers must show proof of COVID-19 vaccination as well as proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken three days prior to boarding an airplane. Zients said the Center for Disease Control and Prevention will determine which vaccines will be accepted.
This is welcomed news as travel bans were imposed 18 months ago by the Trump Administration and these restrictions continued by the Biden Administration (particularly after the spread of the contagious Delta variant) against travelers from 26 countries of the Schengen Area*, China, Rusia, India, Brazil, South Africa and Iran
affecting millions of individuals, families and businesses alike. Currently, some exceptions are made for U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, their immediate family members, a small number of visa holders and those with national interest exceptions, if they have been physically present in any of the banned countries in the previous 14 days of travel.
According to Mr. Zients, the changes announced on this Monday only apply to air travel and do not affect restrictions along the land border. We expect a formal announcement from the White House and Department of State soon, we will keep our reders informed as more information becomes available.
*Germany, Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland
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