President Joe Biden will ease foreign travel restrictions to the U.S. beginning in November, allowing foreigners into the country if they have proof of vaccination and a negative COVID-19 test, the White House said on Monday.
The new rules will replace a hodgepodge of restrictions that had barred non-citizens who had been in Europe, much of Asia and certain other countries in the prior 14 days from entering the U.S. The changes will allow families and others who have been separated by the travel restrictions for 18 months to plan for long-awaited reunifications.
White House COVID-19 coordinator Jeff Zients announced the new policies, which still will require all foreign travellers flying to the U.S. to demonstrate proof of vaccination before boarding, as well as proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken within three days of flight. Mr. Biden will also tighten testing rules for unvaccinated American citizens, who will need to be tested within a day before returning to the U.S., as well as after they arrive home.
Fully vaccinated passengers will not be required to quarantine, Mr. Zients said.
The new policy will replace the patchwork of travel bans first instituted by President Donald Trump last year and tightened by Mr. Biden that restrict travel by non-citizens who have in the prior 14 days been in the U.K., the EU, China, India, Iran, Republic of Ireland, Brazil and South Africa.
Those travel bans had become the source of growing geopolitical frustration, particularly among allies in the U.K. and EU where virus cases are far lower than the U.S. The easing comes ahead of Biden meeting with some European leaders on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly this week. “This is based on individuals rather than a country-based approach, so it’s a stronger system,” Mr. Zients said. The EU and the U.K. had previously moved to allow vaccinated U.S. travelers into their territories without quarantines.
