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US reopened on 8 November 2021 (& subsequent entry restrictions for non-citizens)

Old Sep 15, 2021, 1:47 pm
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New thread for discussing 1-day test requirements for travellers arriving in the US by air
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/coronavirus-travel/2060730-us-require-air-travelers-provide-negative-test-within-1-day-departure.html

Entry ban from eight southern African countries starting on November 29, 2021

Most non-U.S. citizens who have been in South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique or Malaw within the prior 14 days will not be allowed into the United States.

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/11/26/a-proclamation-on-suspension-of-entry-as-immigrants-and-nonimmigrants-of-certain-additional-persons-who-pose-a-risk-of-transmitting-coronavirus-disease-2019/

Entry ban by air to be lifted on November 8, 2021 - All travelers should refer to CDC for travel requirements.

3 day pre-flight testing requirement will continue (US citizens/LPR not vaccinated will have to test no earlier than 1 day prior) Children under 2 years old do not need to test.

Children under 18 are exempt from vaccination requirement
Accepted vaccines will include:
  • AstraZeneca
  • BIBP/Sinopharm
  • Covishield
  • Janssen/J&J
  • Moderna
  • Pfizer-BioNTech
  • Sinovac
Vaccination certificates must come from an official source
There is a face mask mandate when flying to/from the USA, with effectively no exemptions, and including children two and above years old
Airlines need to provide some sort of contact tracing information for potential follow-up cases

Update on U.S. travel policy requiring COVID-19 vaccination
Last Updated: October 25, 2021

As announced by the White House today, the new travel policy requiring foreign nationals traveling to the United States to demonstrate proof of full vaccination against COVID-19 will take effect November 8. The CDCs website explains that, for purposes of entry into the United States, the accepted vaccines will include FDA approved or authorized and WHO Emergency Use Listing vaccines.

COVID-19 Travel Restrictions and Exceptions - U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs
Last updated: October 25, 2021

The presidential proclamations described on this page will no longer be in effect on November 8, 2021. For additional information, please see Safely Resuming Travel by Vaccine Requirement and Rescission of Travel Restrictions on Brazil, China, India, Iran, Ireland, the Schengen Area, South Africa, and the United Kingdom (travel.state.gov).

To protect the public health, there are four presidential proclamations that suspend entry into the United States of all noncitizens who were physically present in any of 33 countries during the 14-day period preceding their entry or attempted entry into the United States. They are Presidential Proclamation 9984 (China); Presidential Proclamation 9992 (Iran); Presidential Proclamation 10143 (Schengen Area, United Kingdom, Ireland, Brazil, and South Africa); and Presidential Proclamation 10199 (India).

What we know so far is
- Confirmed to start on 8 November
- Children under 18 are exempt from the vaccine restrictions, so the varying international standards on jab ages won't be an issue here.

- Vaccines that are OK will include Pfizer, Moderna, AZ, J&J and the two Chinese vaccines.
- Some exemptions from vaccinations are potentially allowed, notably for US citizens, though my guess is airlines will be expecting to see vaccine certificates

- 3 day pre-flight testing requirement will continue, so this needs to be a documented antigen/Lateral Flow test or PCR.
- 3 days is potentially more than 72 hours, departure on a Friday afternoon means a test on Tuesday morning or thereafter.
- NHS Lateral Flows and PCRs can't be used.
- Children over 2 years old travelling with vaccinated travellers have to be tested on the same basis (3 days).
- 1 day testing for unvaccinated USA legal residents (testing on or the day before departure), including their children.

- All passengers need to sign an attestment to confirm their negative test result and also a statement to confirm full vaccination status.
- Children who are not vaccinated do not need to get vaccinated but do need to get a "viral test" 3 to 5 days after arrival in the USA
- As a result there is a separate attestion question for unvaccinated children to confirm that the viral test is arranged.

- Vaccination certificates must come from an official source. The NHS COVID Pass app and EU DCC are specifically mentioned as acceptable.
- Vaccination is counted as two weeks from dose2, or 2 weeks after the sole dose in the case of J&J.
- Antibody certification is not a replacement for the need for vaccination, at least for non USA residents.
- 14 clear days need to elapse before travel. So if jabbed on 1 October then 15 October is when you are good to go.
- Booster vaccinations are not a factor here, they don't count towards or against the primary dose process.

- There is a face mask mandate when flying to/from the USA, with effectively no exemptions, and including children two and above years old.
- Airlines need to provide some sort of contact tracing information for potential follow-up cases.
- These restrictions do not apply at the land border.

Note that a lot of interpretation onus falls on airlines. For example there is no language requirement for vaccine certificates as far as the CDC is concerned, however you can imagine Air France may be hesitant in accepting a vaccine certificate issued in the Welsh language, to take one example.

CDC link
https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2...el-System.html


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US reopened on 8 November 2021 (& subsequent entry restrictions for non-citizens)

 
Old Jun 10, 2021, 4:29 pm
  #916  
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Originally Posted by Owenc
So why is Biden over here then if they don’t need support?
His host was publicly eager to have an in-person meeting like this now since the host couldn’t have it last year.
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Old Jun 10, 2021, 4:37 pm
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Originally Posted by jddbz
I've previous worked for my EU government's civil service. Not everyone working for the government is as workshy as the private sector thinks, but to a man every one is absolutely terrified of being responsible for a mess-up, that will get the politicians in charge of the department in trouble in the media. The number #1 work rule is not "work as little as possible" so much as "don't do anything unusual which might go wrong which you may be held responsible for". I share this because at this stage the complete paralysis, with no reaction to vaccination programs or science, that seems to have set in over the opening of borders is all eerily familiar. Its the same mindset in action - don't rock the boat, don't take even the tiniest of risks. Decision by committee, as slowly and timidly as humanly possible.

I was previously quite optimistic about an early summer re-opening, and had expected movement on the US side of things to happen in May/early June from the sounds that were coming out. But its all gone quiet on that front. The next likely date now is probably July 4th when Biden declares covid "beaten" in the US I think. But if that doesn't happen the announced plan to begin inspecting things in July means we're probably not likely to see anything reopening until September. By then potential TATL traffic will be well down from the summer peak, so it'll be seen as lower risk/more "manageable" traffic levels by the bureaucrats.

Its incredibly frustrating, really.
There is one very different dynamic between the civil servants in “the Old World” and in the US. Many a policy-influencing US bureaucrat is more than happy and in superior position to play the revolving door out into a much more lucrative biweekly/monthly paycheck or other financial income stream from a for-profit/non-governmental actor. Long-time careerists confident in their capabilities aren’t usually chickens in the US.
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Old Jun 10, 2021, 5:20 pm
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Originally Posted by Owenc
So why is Biden over here then if they dont need support?
He's trying to show his domestic audience that he's different from the Big Bad Orange Man. On some level, I'm sure his attitudes towards the rest of the world (Europe, in this case) are genuine, but Europe is just a backdrop to show his voters he's different from Trump. Ultimately, what the American voter thinks is far more important to him. And, as has been said here before, Americans simply don't care about this as much as Europeans.
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Old Jun 10, 2021, 5:28 pm
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His going to Cornwall, Brussels and Geneva is because he’s hooked to foreign jaunts and engaging with foreign figures since his earlier career days; that and he believes that in-person meetings matter for developing personal relationships and have a better chance of influencing developments. In most milieus, sounds like a non-essential trip.
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Last edited by GUWonder; Jun 10, 2021 at 5:34 pm
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Old Jun 10, 2021, 6:14 pm
  #920  
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Originally Posted by Owenc
America is a massive continent sized country, it cant be expected to be treated the same as most other countries.


What does that have to do with anything?

You also act like you've never heard of American Exceptionalism. Not saying Biden believes in it but he will be roasted by those who do if he is seen as caving to Europe.
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Old Jun 10, 2021, 6:31 pm
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Originally Posted by exp


What does that have to do with anything?

You also act like you've never heard of American Exceptionalism. Not saying Biden believes in it but he will be roasted by those who do if he is seen as caving to Europe.
I think most people outside America are aware of that. In the U.K. in particular we are very in tune to American politics.

Last edited by Owenc; Jun 10, 2021 at 7:21 pm
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Old Jun 10, 2021, 9:01 pm
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A few days ago I was crossing the border in Boston arriving with a Qatar Airways flight from Doha. I wasn't coming from a Schengen country / UK but as an EU passport holder (with the O-type employment visa) I was sent once again to the secondary inspection. 30-40min wait + conversations with completely incompetent CBP employees. This happened to me every single time I crossed the US border in the last 12 months except one occasion. It is especially annoying to arrive on a Moscow-NY non-stop flight with my colleagues holding Russian passports with tourist visas (B1/B2), who cross the border in 30sec without questions asked.

This time I finally got completely upset. So I went to the European Commission web-site (https://ec.europa.eu/), found a contact form and sent a message to the Secretariat-General:
Dear EC members,

I am a European scientist with internationally recognized reputation who is currently working in the United States and with this inquiry I demand an action on behalf of the EU authorities regarding the current situation with the admission to the United States of EU citizens employed in highly skilled professions.

As a French citizen, despite having spent almost 10 years in the US I am not applying for a permanent residence status (green card) here because I am not considering this county home. Despite having an employment visa of the highest possible category (O1A - with extraordinary abilities), during every entry to the US since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, I am subject to harassment by the immigration authorities: even when I am not arriving from the European country, I am brought to the secondary inspection along with people who have problems with their visas/passports/etc. It takes generally about 40min to sort out all these questions.

This is because of the travel ban policy implemented in March of 2020 by both the EU and the US. However, there is a substantial difference in its implementation: US citizens holding long-term visas (type D or similar) valid for employment/study/long-term stay in European countries are admitted virtually without any restrictions to their EU destinations, while EU citizens regardless of their visa type are not admitted to the US without a special National Interest Exception (NIE) in case they are arriving from the Schengen countries or Ireland/UK. The NIE is valid only once when issued and it takes days to obtain it from US Embassies because they are "too busy because of the COVID-19 situation".

This situation is a clear violation of the general principle of reciprocity in international relations. In my opinion, the European Commission must act upon this issue and demand the US Department of State to drop the requirement of the National Interest Exception from the EU citizens holding US visas with employment/study authorization.
If everyone on here sends a similar message to them, maybe it will change something. If we keep bragging about it here on the FT without actions, nobody in the government will ever do anything.

P.S.: I took a US-EU American Airlines flight (JFK-MXP) mid-May and it was filled at about 15% -- any more questions about the problems of the airline industry? I was happy though because my upgrade request went through immediately.
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Old Jun 10, 2021, 10:28 pm
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Originally Posted by chil
If everyone on here sends a similar message to them, maybe it will change something.
It won't. EU citizens don't vote in US elections (unless they have dual citizenship).
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Old Jun 10, 2021, 10:42 pm
  #924  
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I’m sure they’ll get right on that, especially since you’re a scientist.
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Old Jun 11, 2021, 3:59 am
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Originally Posted by GloballyServiced
Im sure theyll get right on that, especially since youre a scientist.
Have some empathy. This person is clearly a well to do, educated and talented individual and shouldnt be treated so poorly when entering the US.

America should remember who her allies are.
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Last edited by Owenc; Jun 11, 2021 at 4:12 am
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Old Jun 11, 2021, 4:24 am
  #926  
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Originally Posted by chil
A few days ago I was crossing the border in Boston arriving with a Qatar Airways flight from Doha. I wasn't coming from a Schengen country / UK but as an EU passport holder (with the O-type employment visa) I was sent once again to the secondary inspection. 30-40min wait + conversations with completely incompetent CBP employees. This happened to me every single time I crossed the US border in the last 12 months except one occasion. It is especially annoying to arrive on a Moscow-NY non-stop flight with my colleagues holding Russian passports with tourist visas (B1/B2), who cross the border in 30sec without questions asked.

This time I finally got completely upset. So I went to the European Commission web-site (https://ec.europa.eu/), found a contact form and sent a message to the Secretariat-General:


If everyone on here sends a similar message to them, maybe it will change something. If we keep bragging about it here on the FT without actions, nobody in the government will ever do anything.

P.S.: I took a US-EU American Airlines flight (JFK-MXP) mid-May and it was filled at about 15% -- any more questions about the problems of the airline industry? I was happy though because my upgrade request went through immediately.
Have you tried to route yourself more so via ORD during this ban period? Not sure its worth it or would necessarily help, but change of port can make some difference at times if not only because they may have a different situation with people sent to secondary inspection on arrival.
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Old Jun 11, 2021, 4:31 am
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Or he could try going through Dublin.
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Old Jun 11, 2021, 5:06 am
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Originally Posted by Owenc
Have some empathy. This person is clearly a well to do, educated and talented individual and shouldnt be treated so poorly when entering the US.

America should remember who her allies are.
Yes, but my opinion of the government employees responsible for this leads me to believe that email will not be read by human eyes. So hopefully it was therapeutic for the sender to write
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Old Jun 11, 2021, 5:10 am
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He can't go through DUB, its part of the UK & Ireland entry ban for non US citizens. Even connecting there counts as having been in the country within the previous 14 days for the travel ban.
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Old Jun 11, 2021, 5:29 am
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Connecting does count indeed.

Originally Posted by jddbz
He can't go through DUB, its part of the UK & Ireland entry ban for non US citizens. Even connecting there counts as having been in the country within the previous 14 days for the travel ban.
Why can’t chil go via DUB? Admissibility determination at US CBP Preclearance ports is generally as useful and should be the same as admissibility determination by US CBP at a port of entry on US territory if the person is admissible into US even when coming from an area restricted by the US. Or is the traveler using a loophole and perhaps cutting it too close and thus ending up in secondary at US airports of entry even if not coming directly to the US from an area restricted by the US due to Covid-19?
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Last edited by GUWonder; Jun 11, 2021 at 5:36 am
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