Cypriot authorities have announced that travelers from France, Spain, the Netherlands, Portugal and Uruguay are now exempt from double testing and quarantine as these countries have been excluded from the red category.
However, those arriving from the orange category, to which the aforementioned countries belong, still have to provide a PCR test done 72 hours prior to arrival in order to enter Cyprus, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
The following countries belong to the orange category:
EU member states: Denmark, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Finland.
Microstates: Andorra, Vatican
Schengen members: Iceland
Third countries: United Arab Emirates, Qatar, China (including Hong Kong and Macau), Kuwait, Bahrain, Singapore.
According to the weekly epidemiological risk assessment, Latvia and Romania were excluded from the orange category as COVID-19 infection rates soared in those countries. Starting Monday, September 27, travelers from these countries must submit a PCR test 72 hours prior to departure and quarantine for 14 days, or self-test upon arrival in the country to prevent self-isolation.
The rest of the red-listed or high-risk countries include the following:
EU member states: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Croatia, Lithuania, Slovenia.
Microstates: Monaco, San Marino
Schengen members: Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Norway
Third countries: Egypt, Armenia, Georgia, United States of America, Great Britain, Japan, Israel, Canada, Belarus, Lebanon, South Korea, Ukraine, Russia, Serbia.
Compared to the previous risk assessment, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Moldova are no longer considered red countries.
No changes have occurred in the category of “green” countries, which, as follows from the following list, has remained the same:
EU Member States: Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic
Third countries: Australia, Jordan, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia.
However, travelers who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or who have recovered from the disease are exempted from testing and quarantine requirements. The country has also successfully connected to the EU’s COVID-19 digital certificate gateway, which allows vaccinated and recovered travelers to move freely across the EU by presenting a digital or physical document.
Regarding the epidemiological situation in the country, the latest data released by the World Health Organization (WHO) shows that 551 deaths have been registered in Cyprus, with one of them recorded on 27 September. There have also been 119,689 cases of COVID-19 infection, with 99 of them identified today.
Vaccination rates in Cyprus are on the rise as 80.1 percent of the population is currently vaccinated with a single dose of COVID-19 vaccine and 76.8 percent are currently fully vaccinated against coronavirus, according to the European Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Of the 1,536,043 doses of vaccines distributed in Cyprus, 1,136,286 have been administered to the population.