TRAVEL REGULATIONS

Fully vaccinated U.S.-bound air travelers need proof of negative coronavirus test

BY DAWN GILBERTSON AND JAYME DEERWESTER

TRAVELERS FLYING INTO the United States from international destinations will be required to show proof of a negative coronavirus test before boarding their flight.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) policy took effect Jan. 26. The agency implemented the requirement to help slow the spread of COVID-19 as the vaccine rollout continues.

While the agency has adjusted some of its recommendations since vaccinations began, travelers flying into the United States must still be tested and provide verification of a negative result.

“We continue to encourage every American to get vaccinated as soon as it’s their turn, so we can begin

to safely take steps back to our everyday lives,” said CDC Director Rochelle Walensky in April.

International travelers must get a viral test within three days of their flight to the U.S. and must show proof of a negative test to their airline before boarding. If a passenger does not provide documentation of a negative test or recovery from COVID-19, or chooses not to take a test, the airline must deny boarding, the CDC says.

For months, airlines pushed for a testing program to restart badly depressed international travel — especially critical business travel.

There were 2.1 million arrivals between Dec. 1 and Dec. 28, says Martin Cetron, the director of the CDC’s Division of Global Migration and Quarantine, an average of 76,000 passengers a day and quadruple the number of passengers last June.

According to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, 3.2 million passengers flew internationally on U.S. airlines in December 2020.

However, the number of scheduled international flights to the United States is down sharply. In February, airlines scheduled 29,121 flights, compared with 51,500 in February 2020, before the pandemic took hold, according to aviation data firm Cirium.

Statistics of 2021 travel are not yet available, but the emergence of new, more contagious strands of COVID-19 may have an effect on previous travel projections.

Trade industry groups such as Airlines for America have urged the government to implement a rapid-testing requirement for travelers to the United States. The group says its goal is to stop the spread of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, while eliminating entry restrictions on travelers from Europe and Brazil.

“These entry restrictions should be removed concurrently with the testing program, which will provide yet another layer of safety in the travel journey,” Nicholas Calio, the group’s CEO, said in a letter.

The CDC has stated that fully vaccinated travelers do not have to show test results for domestic flights.