In principle, there is still a quarantine obligation of ten days after entry from risk areas. What is new is that, according to the new regulation, people who have not been vaccinated or have recovered can "test themselves freely" . An antigen test that is not older than 48 hours or a PCR test that is not older than 72 hours is sufficient.Anyone who enters by plane still needsa negative test before departure .

No relief when entering from virus variant areas

The new rules for complete exemption from quarantine through tests, however, only apply to entry from "normal" risk areas. Anyone entering from a high-incidence area can continue to end the quarantine after five days at the earliest with a negative test. Vaccinated and recovered people are also exempt from quarantine after providing evidence. After staying in virus variant areas , a negative test must already be available upon entry. In addition, the quarantine lasts 14 days and can not be ended earlier. Even vaccinated or recovered people are not exempt from the obligation to test before entry and the 14-day quarantine after staying in virus variant areas.

Negative Covid test must be shown

Anyone travelling to Germany by plane must also still show a negative test before boarding, regardless of which country they are flying in from, Spahn added.

The updated travel guidance comes as Germany has significantly ramped up its vaccination pace, with more than 33 percent of adults having received their first jab so far.

Test requirement on entry to Germany

Air travel

From 30 March 2021, all persons travelling to Germany by air must present a negative COVID‑19 test result before embarking on their journey. This applies regardless of the country from where the individual has travelled and also to passengers only traversing Germany (i.e. for international transit). Persons under six years of age and aircraft crews are exempt. The negative test result must be presented to the airline before departure.

[...]

Quarantine regulations

In Germany, the individual Länder are responsible for quarantine regulations. The Länder have put in place their own regulations on the basis of a specimen regulation.

Exception: people vaccinated or recovered from an infection except when entering from virus variant areas

From 9 May 2021, an obligatory quarantine period no longer applies for entries from risk areas and high incidence areas for those who have been vaccinated or who have recovered from an infection.

People who have been vaccinated are those who have received all required doses of a COVID‑19 vaccine listed on the website of the Paul-Ehrlich-Institut.(https://www.pei.de/DE/arzneimittel/i...d-19-node.html). A period of at least 14 days must have elapsed since receiving the last vaccine dose. Vaccinated persons must not display any symptoms typical of a COVID‑19 infection.

Individuals who have recovered from an infection are those who can submit a positive PCR test that was conducted at least 28 days previously but no more than six months ago and who do not demonstrate any symptoms typical of a COVID‑19 infection.

A mandatory quarantine period continues to apply to people entering the country having stayed in virus variant areas and for those who were in contact with a virus variant that is not yet widespread in Germany.

Further information about regulations for people who have been vaccinated or who have recovered from an infection is available on the website of the German Government.

• Passengers will be refused entry unless they are holding confirmation of a successful digital entry registration, which can be completed online at https://www.einreiseanmeldung.de/ before entering Germany, due to the outbreak of Covid-19. This does not apply to passengers who have only been to 'green' countries in the past 10 days. Passengers will be informed if they are exempt in the above link.
  
  A paper form is only accepted as a replacement if the electronic registration is out of order or if the passenger does not have access to the electronic registration.
  
• Passengers are not permitted to enter Germany unless they meet one of the following conditions:
  
  1. they are holding a negative Covid-19 test certificate. The test must be performed within 72 hours before arrival in Germany for nucleic acid tests (PCR, LAMP and TMA tests are accepted), or must be performed within 48 hours before arrival in Germany for antigen tests. The test certificate must be in German, English, French, Italian or Spanish, and is accepted in either digital or printed format;
  2. they are holding a vaccination certificate proving that they have been fully vaccinated; or
  3. they are holding proof of recovery from Covid-19.
  Please note that passengers who have been to areas of variants of concern (VOC) (which are Botswana, Brazil, Eswatini, India, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa) in the past 10 days before arriving in Germany must present a negative Covid-19 test certificate. A vaccination certificate or proof of recovery will not be accepted for these passengers.
  
  The requirement to hold a negative Covid-19 test certificate does not apply to the following passengers:
  
  1. passengers in transit;
  2. passengers transiting via Germany to a country in the Schengen area.
• Passengers who have stayed in the United Kingdom or South Africa in the past 10 days are required to either hold a negative Covid-19 test result tested within 24 hours before arrival in Düsseldorf, Munich or and Nürnberg or undergo a Covid-19 test upon arrival.
  
• Passengers must quarantine for a minimum of 5 days due to the outbreak of Covid-19. They may seek a diagnostic test on day 5, and if a negative result is received, the passenger is allowed to exit quarantine. If the passenger chooses to not undergo the diagnostic test, they must quarantine for 10 days.
  
  This does not apply to the following passengers:
  
  1. passengers entering for less than 72 hours for family, urgent care, transport or diplomatic reasons;
  2. cross-border commuters;
  3. members of foreign armed forces who travel to Germany for official purposes;
  4. passengers travelling for work provided their workplaces comply with Covid-19 measures and restrictions;
  5. passengers travelling for urgent medical treatment;
  6. diplomats and staff of international organisations, provided holding certification by their employer;
  7. passengers who are essential personnel, or healthcare professionals, provided holding certification by their employer;
  8. passengers travelling for urgent education or training purposes, provided holding certification from their educational institution;
  9. passengers travelling for the preparation, participation, implementation and follow-up of international sports events, provided holding a written or electronic negative test result in relation to an infection with the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus in German, English or French issued within 48 hours prior to arrival;
  10. passengers holding proof of vaccination or proof of recovery from Covid-19, provided they have not spent time in an area of variants of concern (VOC) (which are Botswana, Brazil, Eswatini, India, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa) prior to entry.
• Passengers travelling to Hamburg must quarantine for 10 days on arrival, due to the outbreak of Covid-19. They must register with the Hamburg Service at https://serviceportal.hamburg.de/Ham...Entry/AFM_MERG, and may submit a Covid-19 test result in German, English, or French 5 days after arrival. The quarantine period may end on the 5th day, provided a negative result is received.
  
• Passengers who have spent time in an area of variants of concern (VOC) (which are Botswana, Brazil, Eswatini, India, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa) prior to entry will be required to quarantine for 14 days upon arrival in Germany.
• Passengers travelling to Hesse must quarantine for 10 days on arrival, due to the outbreak of Covid-19.
  
  This does not apply to:
  
  1. passengers in transit through Germany who do not display any symptoms of Covid-19;
  2. passengers holding a medical certificate obtained within 48 hours proving they are free of Covid-19; or
  3. employees of transport companies who have been abroad for less than 72 hours or who have been in Hesse for less than 48 hours.
• All permanent residents in Greece departing on international flights from any Greek airports must hold one of the following, due to the outbreak of Covid-19.
  
  1. A valid e-PLF receipt and a QR code confirming they, or someone they are travelling with (e.g. parent, tour guide), has submitted a Passenger Locator Form (PLF) at https://travel.gov.gr/#/ at least 24 hours before check in;
  2. An email from the Greek authorities confirming the PLF has been submitted.
  Family or travel companions can travel under one QR code, provided they are all mentioned in the QR code and the Passenger Locator Form.
  
• Passengers will be refused entry unless they complete a Passenger Locator Card (Aussteigekarte), due to the outbreak of Covid-19. Passengers must also quarantine for 10 days on arrival in Germany.
  
  This does not apply to passengers arriving from 'green' countries. Passengers can check if they are exempt on the following website: https://www.einreiseanmeldung.de/
  
• Passengers may find regulations for entering Germany in connection with Covid-19 at https://www.rki.de/DE/Content/InfAZ/...sende_Tab.html.
• Passengers need to wear a FFP, KN95/N95 or surgical grade face mask during their entire flight, as well as on all public transport, indoor public areas, or busy outdoor areas in Germany, due to the outbreak of Covid-19.

In principle, entry is possible from:

• EU member states
• states associated with Schengen: Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Liechtenstein
• other countries from which entry is possible in light of the epidemiological situation assessment by the EU.

Germany allows unrestricted entry for residents of the following countries:

• Australia
• Israel (as of 8 May 2021, 0:00 a.m.)
• New Zealand
• Singapore
• South Korea
• Thailand

In addition, the list is to be expanded to include

• China
• Hong Kong and Macao SARs of the People’s Republic of China

as soon as the possibility of mutual entry is confirmed.

For all persons residing in a third country that is not included in the above list, the current restrictions on travel continue to apply, i.e. these persons may enter Germany only if they serve in an important role or if there is an urgent need for their travel (see What constitutes an urgent need for travel?). A person is considered to reside in a country if they have their domicile or habitual residence there. A person is specifically considered to have their domicile in a country if they have spent the past six months there.