It has been reported that the federal cabinet has agreed to allow travellers from selected non-EU countries to enter Germany again, starting the 2nd of July.
Germany allowing travellers from non-EU countries again
It has been reported that the federal cabinet has agreed to allow travellers from selected non-EU countries to enter Germany again, starting the 2nd of July.
This is dependent on the COVID-19 rate of infection at the departure point and in Germany and follows a recommendation issued by the Council of the European Union to allow travel from 14 “safe countries”, a list of which will be updated every two weeks.
However, whereas the EU has put forward a list of 14 countries, Germany has granted unrestricted entry to nationals of just 8 countries. These are Australia, Georgia, Canada, Montenegro, New Zealand, Thailand, Tunisia and Uruguay. Four countries on the EU "safe" list, Algeria, Morocco, Rwanda and Serbia, have been denied unrestricted access due to the current Coronavirus situation in these countries.
For the purposes of travel, the UK will be treated as part of the EU until the end of the transition period at the end of 2020 and for three other countries, China, Japan and South Korea, entry restrictions will only be lifted if access is granted to German citizens.
Germany has stated that travellers from so-called “third countries” can still be granted entry if they have “an important reason for travel”. Examples of these are if they have an existing right to residence in Germany, they are healthcare professionals, work in the transport of goods or wish to join family members currently living in Germany.
Nevertheless, all ‘third-country’ visitors arriving in Germany from a designated risk area (as defined by the Robert Koch Institute) are required to go into quarantine for 14 days upon arrival, unless they can present a recent, negative coronavirus test or are merely transiting through at the airport.
Click here to find out more information on global travel restrictions.