Mumbai: Germany’s health agency said on Monday it would lift restrictions on most travelers from the UK, India, and three other countries affected by the delta version of Covid-19.
The Robert Koch Institute, a German federal government agency responsible for disease control and prevention, said India, Nepal, Russia, Portugal, and the UK have been downgraded to “high-incidence areas” from the current categorization of “areas of variant concern”. This would make it easier for travelers who are not German residents or citizens to enter the country.
Current rules in Germany only allow its citizens to enter the country from a different nation and are subject to a two-week quarantine, regardless of vaccination status. The status of “high-incidence areas” would allow anyone from such countries to enter Germany, provided they test negative on arrival and be quarantined on arrival for 10 days.
If they test negative for Covid-19, the quarantine period can be shortened to five days. The new rules will be effective from Wednesday.
In a decision effective Wednesday, Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Friday that Britons who have had two COVID-19 vaccinations will soon be able to travel to Germany without going into quarantine on arrival.
Earlier on Monday, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson set out plans to end social and economic COVID-19 restrictions in England in two weeks’ time, a test of whether a rapid vaccine rollout offers enough protection from the highly contagious Delta variant.
Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, and like us on Facebook for the latest updates and interesting stories.
