From January 22, all passengers arriving in Egypt must pass a rapid test upon arrival at the airport.
This was reported by the airline AZUR air. The carrier, in turn, refers to a letter with a circular from the Egyptian Ministry of Health.
According to him, there are ambiguities in the new rules. Not sure if children should be tested? Will the tests be paid or not? In addition, the document only refers to vaccinated passengers. Whether this means that the unvaccinated will be denied entry remains unclear. We requested official clarification from the representative office of the Ministry of Tourism.
It should be noted that last year, tourists arriving at the resorts of Egypt had the opportunity to pass an express analysis at the airports of Hurghada, Sharm el-Sheikh, Marsa Alama and Taba for $30. From January 22, this will already become a mandatory requirement, in addition to PCR testing, done no later than 72 hours before departure. If the procedure turns out to be paid, the cost of the tour per person rises exactly as much.
Information update:
The Ministry of Health of Egypt commented on the innovation and clarified that testing at the airport will only have to be done by those tourists who have difficulty providing any of the medical documents (certificate or PCR test). They will be able to take rapid antigen tests right at the airport.
An arriving foreigner may be subjected to rapid testing for the ID NOW antigen if his documents seem “doubtful” to the inspectors. “Random testing on arrival awaits only those travelers whose test certificates or vaccination certificates do not meet the required rules for entry into Egypt.”