Foreign Ministry announces change of US air travel requirements in light of pandemic

All US-bound air travelers are required to present upon boarding a negative COVID-19 test taken no more than 72 hours (3 days) before arrival to the US; both molecular and antigen tests are accepted, Romania's Foreign Ministry said in a release on the new measures announced by the American authorities regarding the requirements for entering the US in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The new measures will take effect on January 26, 2021. According to information released by the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), all air travelers to the US shall present a negative test for SARS-CoV-2 or documentation of recovery from SARS-CoV-2 (documentation of positive viral test results and a letter from the healthcare provider or a public health official stating that the respective person has been cleared for travel). The test for SARS-CoV-2 must have been taken no more than 3 days before flight departure. The document certifying the negative test result must be submitted in printed format. Airline representatives shall deny boarding to anyone who refuses to present the documents requested by the US authorities. The measure applies to all persons over 2 years of age, including US citizens, permanent residents and citizens in transit. The US federal authorities recommend that persons entering the US get tested 3 - 5 days after arrival and remain in self-isolation at home/residence for a period of 7 days from the moment of entering the US territory. The Foreign Ministry recommends checking the possible restrictions applicable to travel, depending on the US transited states on the website of the US State Department: www.travel.state.gov, as well as with the airline operating the flight, for the latest information. AGERPRES (RO - author: Andreea Rotaru, editor: Mihai Simionescu; EN - editor: Simona Klodnischi)