Specifically, the preparations from Biontech / Pfizer, Astrazeneca, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, Sinopharm and Sinovac are accepted. Travelers would have to prove their vaccination status to the respective airline before boarding a plane to the United States, it said. A complete vaccination against the corona virus is a prerequisite. People are considered fully vaccinated at least two weeks after receiving their last required injection. The White House emphasized that a combination of two different vaccines would also be accepted here – provided the preparations were approved by the FDA or the WHO.

There are only a few exceptions to the vaccination requirement for international travelers, for example for children or people who cannot be vaccinated for health reasons. US citizens are exempt from the vaccination requirements for entry anyway.

According to the US government, travelers must generally present a negative corona test that is no more than three days old in addition to their vaccination certificate. For unvaccinated persons who fall under the permitted exemptions, the test must not be older than one day. The airlines would also have to keep the contact information of passengers so that they can be notified of any corona cases, it said.

The easing comes after more than a year and a half of widespread entry bans for people from numerous countries, including residents of the EU and the UK. The then US President Donald Trump had ordered an entry freeze for foreigners from large parts of Europe in March 2020, at the beginning of the corona pandemic. Entry from the Schengen area, Great Britain and Ireland was prohibited with a few exceptions. The USA also imposed extensive entry bans on foreigners from India, China, Brazil, South Africa and Iran because of the pandemic and rigorously maintained them for many months. (APA)