The United States administration has finally decided to release vaccinated travelers from 26 Schengen countries, the United Kingdom, Ireland and others.
The move was announced on Monday, September 19, after months of warnings and growing pressure from EU institutions and officials.
Although the US government has not yet made an official statement on the matter, revealing more details on how the lifting ban will be lifted, some things are already known.
When will the ban on entry to the United States be lifted?
Announcing the decision to allow vaccinated travelers to enter, within the limits of the ban on entry into the United States, the US administration only said that this will happen only in early November.
Although the exact date has not been announced by any US authorities or officials, it is believed that the entry ban will be lifted no later than November 15.
Who will benefit from the lifting of the US travel ban?
Travelers from 26 Schengen countries, Ireland, the United Kingdom, China, India, South Africa, Iran and Brazil, who have been vaccinated against COVID-19, will soon be able to travel to the United States.
According to the diplomatic mission of the European Union in the United States, travelers will also need to submit negative test results for COVID-19 within 72 hours after departure and have a plane ticket.
From the beginning of November, the United States will receive vaccinated travelers.
What you need:
- Confirmation of complete vaccination
- Proof of a negative COVID-19 test within three days of departure.
- Your ticket!
What vaccines will be taken?
Since Monday, when the White House announced that the entry ban would be lifted for vaccinated travelers who have so far been barred from entering the United States, travelers have been asking which vaccines will be accepted for entry into the United States.
At a news conference on Tuesday, a spokesman for the EU Commission said it was expected that travelers who had been vaccinated with all EMA-approved vaccines, including the AstraZeneca vaccine, would be allowed to enter the United States. The latter has not yet been approved by the US Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The European Medicines Agency has so far approved the use of four vaccines produced by Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Janssen and Moderna. Several EU countries have vaccinated travelers with other vaccines, such as Covishield and Sputnik V.
On the same day, NDTV quoted an unnamed US medical institution as saying that anyone who received a full vaccination with a vaccine approved by the FDA or the World Health Organization (WHO) would be considered vaccinated.
The FDA has currently approved the Moderna, Pfizer and Janssen vaccines. The WHO, on the other hand, approved Pfizer, AstraZeneca (including Covishield), Janssen, Moderna, Sinopharm, and Sinovac.
On Tuesday, a U.S. scientist and immunologist who serves as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and chief medical adviser to President Anthony Fauci said those vaccinated with AstraZeneca-Oxford should also be allowed to enter the United States in November.
In conclusion, it should be noted that those vaccinated with Pfizer, Moderna and Janssen will probably be allowed to enter the United States, and for Europeans vaccinated with AstraZeneca, this is still a matter of discussion, although the chances that they will be allowed to enter, high.
Will those vaccinated with mixed vaccines be considered fully vaccinated?
It is not yet known whether those who will be vaccinated with mixed vaccines, ie AstraZeneca + Pfizer, will be considered fully vaccinated. The number of those vaccinated with mixed vaccines is quite high in the EU after many countries stopped vaccinating with the second AstraZeneca vaccine after suspicions of side effects in adolescents.
However, the UK now recognizes the status of those vaccinated with two different coronavirus vaccines as fully vaccinated.
Who will not be able to take advantage of the lifting of the entry ban?
The lifting of the travel ban for EU travelers will only apply to those who have been vaccinated. As explained above, although it is not yet known which vaccines will be given, those who have been vaccinated with Sputnik V, which has not yet been approved by the WHO, will probably not be able to take advantage of the lifting of the entry ban.
Travelers who have received only the first dose of COVID-19 are also not eligible for an entry ban.
Those who have received a mixed vaccination may also be excluded from the list of those who will be considered fully vaccinated.
Travelers who have been in countries that are currently banned from entering the United States via the land border from Canada and Mexico for the past 14 days will also not be able to take this step.
Will the vaccination requirement apply to countries that are not banned from entering?
Announcing the decision, the US administration said that travelers from countries that have been banned from entering for more than a year will be able to enter the United States in November, if they are fully vaccinated.
The administration has not said whether such a requirement will apply to countries from which entry has so far been allowed.
Is there a chance that those who have recovered from COVID-19 will also be allowed to enter the United States?
According to the information received so far, those who have recovered from COVID-19 will not be exempted from the entry ban.