Last edit by: l etoile
10 June 2022 - The Biden administration will on Sunday end a requirement that air travelers to the U.S. undergo Covid-19 tests before departure, according to federal officials.
The testing requirement is set to end June 12 at 12:01 a.m.
CDC Order and FAQ: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/testing-international-air-travelers.html
CDC Order updated 2 December 2021:
All air passengers 2 years or older with a flight departing to the US from a foreign country at or after 12:01am EST (5:01am GMT) on December 6, 2021, are required show a negative COVID-19 viral test result taken no more than 1 day before travel, or documentation of having recovered from COVID-19 in the past 90 days, before they board their flight.
What types of SARS-CoV-2 test are acceptable under the Order?
You must be tested with a viral test that could be either an antigen test or a nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT). Examples of available NAATs for SARS-CoV-2 include but are not restricted to reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP), transcription-mediated amplification (TMA), nicking enzyme amplification reaction (NEAR), and helicase-dependent amplification (HDA). The test used must be authorized for use by the relevant national authority for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 in the country where the test is administered. A viral test conducted for U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) personnel, including DOD contractors, dependents, and other U.S. government employees, and tested by a DOD laboratory located in a foreign country also meets the requirements of the Order.
eMed (Abbot BinaxNOW, one of the approved methods) Thread on Flyertalk: https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/coronavirus-travel/2048940-issues-re-emed-abbot-binaxnow-navica-tests.html
The testing requirement is set to end June 12 at 12:01 a.m.
CDC Order and FAQ: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/testing-international-air-travelers.html
CDC Order updated 2 December 2021:
- If you plan to travel internationally, you will need to get a COVID-19 viral test (regardless of vaccination status or citizenship) no more than 1 day before you travel by air into the United States. You must show your negative result to the airline before you board your flight.
- If you recently recovered from COVID-19, you may instead travel with documentation of recovery from COVID-19 (i.e., your positive COVID-19 viral test result on a sample taken no more than 90 days before the flights departure from a foreign country and a letter from a licensed healthcare provider or a public health official stating that you were cleared to travel).
All air passengers 2 years or older with a flight departing to the US from a foreign country at or after 12:01am EST (5:01am GMT) on December 6, 2021, are required show a negative COVID-19 viral test result taken no more than 1 day before travel, or documentation of having recovered from COVID-19 in the past 90 days, before they board their flight.
What types of SARS-CoV-2 test are acceptable under the Order?
You must be tested with a viral test that could be either an antigen test or a nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT). Examples of available NAATs for SARS-CoV-2 include but are not restricted to reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP), transcription-mediated amplification (TMA), nicking enzyme amplification reaction (NEAR), and helicase-dependent amplification (HDA). The test used must be authorized for use by the relevant national authority for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 in the country where the test is administered. A viral test conducted for U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) personnel, including DOD contractors, dependents, and other U.S. government employees, and tested by a DOD laboratory located in a foreign country also meets the requirements of the Order.
eMed (Abbot BinaxNOW, one of the approved methods) Thread on Flyertalk: https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/coronavirus-travel/2048940-issues-re-emed-abbot-binaxnow-navica-tests.html
US to require air travelers to provide a negative test within 1 day of departure
#1066
Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 4,725
Did he use Verifly? BA encourages (requires?) it and when we used it we had to upload our negative results and at the airports all they asked to see was the approved pass on Verifly, not the actual test result.
#1067
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: SNA
Posts: 18,239
He did not. Don't think he could have gotten checked in if he had.
#1068
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: YYC
Posts: 2,068
Both of Canada's main airlines, AC and WS, only require the attestation at check-in and asking for results is hit and miss. You can do OLCI on both without ever showing your test results and be issued a boarding pass to the US.
The legislation only requires carriers to keep record of the attestation on file and not the test results....so this is why some carriers simply DGAF about the test itself.
The legislation only requires carriers to keep record of the attestation on file and not the test results....so this is why some carriers simply DGAF about the test itself.
#1069
Join Date: Jan 2017
Posts: 277
Not totally linked, but HHS will extend the Public Health Emergency Declaration past the current mid-July end date. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...ency-past-july
#1070
Join Date: Nov 2007
Programs: Marriott Bonvoy Platinum, Hilton Honors Diamond, Delta Gold
Posts: 4,296
I understand that at the point of entry in the USA, border guards have the right to check. I have flown into JFK BOS SFO and LAX in the last three months. I have seen these checks at SFO only, and probably one passenger in 5 at the most. So whilst clearly there has been a breakdown in the checking pre-departure, the US Govt, can still deny entry at the point of entry and bounce the passenger back to the airline. A qured video LFT test costs circa 23gbp. I don't understand why someone would play the system, even if it is brokenmy own humble opinion of course.
#1071
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: 4me
Posts: 11,957
Are you saying that a US citizen can be denied entry upon arrival to the US and sent back to the country they came from if they fail to produce a negative test result? I was under the impression that they can't do that and is the reason why there's no test requirement for land entry.
#1072
Join Date: Nov 2007
Programs: Marriott Bonvoy Platinum, Hilton Honors Diamond, Delta Gold
Posts: 4,296
I'm certainly not one to try finding out, but I highly doubt they have the authority to bar a US citizen from entry. I think the most they can do is penalize the airline for not checking before departure.
#1073
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: jfk area
Programs: AA platinum; 2MM AA, Delta Diamond, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 10,291
PS: That one can cross into the USA via a LAND crossing (without a negative COVID test), but has to be tested when arriving by air, makes the whole "system" not creditable.
#1074
Join Date: Jun 2007
Posts: 4,638
The testing requirement has stopped exactly zero new variants.
#1075
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: SFO
Programs: UA 1K, AA EXP, Hyatt Glob, Hilton Diamond, Marriott Plat, Total Wine & More Reserve
Posts: 4,443
It's interesting that a few similar anecdotes have come up recently on another travel forum of agents not asking for or seeming interested in the test document, only the attestation form. Yet my most recent three experiences returning to the US were the opposite. The airline agents looked at the test results but didn't collect the attestation form and didn't even take it when I tried to give it to them. One looked at it for a second before handing it back, the others just said they didn't need it without even reading it. A few anecdotes aren't a trend, of course, but I do wonder if there's either lax training at this point or perhaps some "compliance fatigue" setting in among some agents.
BA does not require it. They did ask for an attestation when checking in at the desk. A screenshot of the confirmation page saying it was completed was sufficient.
#1076
Join Date: Nov 2018
Programs: DL PM
Posts: 251
Pretty much. They wanted FA's to be mask enforcers, Check in agents to be test gatekeepers, OSHA (and employers) to be gatekeepers of vaccinations. Then surprise pikachu face when their mandates fail.
#1077
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Switzerland / Estonia
Programs: AY+ Platinum, BAEC Silver, airbaltic VIP, HH Diamond, Radisson VIP, IHG Diamond Elite
Posts: 6,510
First longhaul flights in nearly 3 years for us soon to the USA. I can't say I look forward to it at all but have no choice this time. There is so much paperwork involved now that it feels like visiting a very exotic destination. This nonsense has to stop asap.
#1078
Join Date: Jul 2021
Location: Planet C53 (LHR)
Programs: BAEC Gold/ GGL / Avis Preferred/ Hilton Honours Diamond
Posts: 219
Are you saying that a US citizen can be denied entry upon arrival to the US and sent back to the country they came from if they fail to produce a negative test result? I was under the impression that they can't do that and is the reason why there's no test requirement for land entry.
#1079
Join Date: May 2009
Location: South Park, CO
Programs: Tegridy Elite
Posts: 5,678
Correct, US citizens can't be denied entry once they show up at a US point of entry.
#1080
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: SEA
Programs: DL Gold Medallion, Avis President's Club
Posts: 188
Now the CDC recommends all domestic travelers complete a COVID test before departure, regardless of vaccination status: https://edition.cnn.com/travel/artic...ing/index.html.
I wouldn't say this bodes well for ending the one-day test requirement any time soon.
Israel, which has had some of the most stringent entry requirements, is ending all COVID testing for air travel on Saturday: https://www.timesofisrael.com/air-tr...ting-saturday/
I wouldn't say this bodes well for ending the one-day test requirement any time soon.
Israel, which has had some of the most stringent entry requirements, is ending all COVID testing for air travel on Saturday: https://www.timesofisrael.com/air-tr...ting-saturday/