Corona: Travel warnings apply here

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Florian Tiefenböck studied human medicine at the LMU Munich. In March 2014, he joined as a student and has supported the editorial team with medical articles ever since. After receiving his medical license and practical work in internal medicine at the University Hospital Augsburg, he has been a permanent member of the team since December 2019 and, among other things, ensures the medical quality of the tools.

More posts by Florian Tiefenböck All content is checked by medical journalists.

It is becoming increasingly difficult for travelers to overlook travel warnings. Here you will find an overview of the regions in which the Federal Foreign Office is warning of a trip due to the corona pandemic.

Since August 1, 2021, there has been a "general obligation to provide evidence". Accordingly, all travelers from the age of 12 must present a negative test when entering Germany. Alternatively, proof of recovery or vaccination also applies.

Where does a travel warning apply due to Corona / Covid-19?

The Federal Foreign Office issues individual travel advice for each individual country. The authority can advise against or warn against “unnecessary, tourist trips”. She is currently calling for "particular caution when traveling". Travel warnings apply to high risk and virus variant areas. You can read which countries are affected by this in our article "Coronavirus: These are the risk areas".

Where do special Corona travel advice apply in the EU or Europe?

Covid-19 travel warnings currently apply to the following areas within the EU due to a very high incidence:

• France: Travel warning for the French overseas territories of French Guiana and New Caledonia
• Estonia
• Ireland: Travel warning for the Border region
• Latvia
• Lithuania
• Netherlands: travel warning for the autonomous and overseas parts
• Romania
• Slovenia

In addition to these EU countries, the Federal Foreign Office also warns against traveling to the following European countries because of the very high number of cases:

• Albania
• Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Georgia
• Kosovo
• Moldova (Moldova)
• Montenegro
• North Macedonia
• Serbia
• Turkey
• Ukraine
• United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: Travel warning for the entire United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland including the Isle of Man as well as all Channel Islands and all British overseas territories
• Belarus (Belarus)

There is currently no travel warning due to new virus mutants for either an EU or a European country.

Which entry rules currently apply?

A new entry regulation has been in effect since August 1st. Among other things, it determines the extent to which people have to test or isolate themselves when entering Germany. What is new is a fundamental obligation to provide evidence, regardless of where you are traveling from and with which means of transport. There are also special provisions for returning from countries to which a travel warning applies.

Registration requirement

With regard to the corona pandemic, the Federal Foreign Office warns against traveling to virus mutant and high-risk areas. Holidaymakers who have stayed in one at any time in the ten days before must register their return trip before they enter Germany.

In order to facilitate the reporting, the Federal Ministry of Health has set up a website for this purpose: digital entry registration. The data entered will then be forwarded to the respective health department. Usually, the registration also checks the company they are traveling back with. Without a confirmation of registration, this transport may be refused.

If returning travelers cannot register digitally, the notification can also be made in writing. The transport company or the federal police will then receive this replacement message, for example. If holidaymakers are not asked to hand in the document upon arrival, they must either make up the digital entry registration at home or send the written document to the following address: Deutsche Post E-POST Solutions GmbH, 69990 Mannheim

Separation obligation

In principle, holidaymakers who were in a risk area ten days before entering Germany are obliged to isolate themselves at home. If you travel back from a high-risk area, vacationers have to isolate themselves for ten days. If, on the other hand, they have stayed in a virus variant area, the obligation to segregate them lasts for two weeks.

Under certain circumstances, the quarantine can currently only be ended prematurely in high-risk areas:

• Immediately through a recovery certificate or a vaccination certificate, transmitted as part of the digital entry registration
• through a test that was carried out on the fifth day after your return at the earliest

When staying in a virus variant area, travelers cannot shorten the quarantine (neither through recovery and vaccination certificates, nor through a negative test result)!

Should the Robert Koch Institute declare a vaccine to be sufficiently effective against virus mutants in the future, this requirement could change.

Compulsory test

When entering Germany, all travelers who have reached the age of twelve must be tested for Sars-CoV-2. This currently applies to all holidaymakers, as there is a global risk of being infected with Sars-CoV-2. Alternatively, proof of recovery or vaccination can be presented, unless you are entering from a virus variant area (or have been in one within the last ten days).

The obligation to provide evidence applies to ALL entries, regardless of whether the authorities have issued a travel warning, from which country and with which means of transport you are entering.

In order to comply with the obligation to provide evidence, one should note:

• PCR tests must not be older than 72 hours and antigen tests not older than 48 hours prior to entry (the time of planned arrival applies in each case)
• in virus variant areas, the test must generally not be older than 24 hours

Those who have recovered and who have been vaccinated can exempt themselves from this test requirement with appropriate proof. However, this does NOT currently apply to previous stays in a virus variant area!

There is currently a ban on passenger transport by bus, train, ship and flight from countries and regions in which virus mutants are spreading!

There is an exception for day commuters, educational commuters and commuters. You will (only) need proof of this at least twice a week. Excluded from this are trips from high-risk or virus mutant areas. Then those affected always need proof. The exceptions also do not apply to entry by plane.

When does the Federal Foreign Office issue a warning?

The Berlin authority warns against traveling if “there is a real danger to life and limb”. In the corona pandemic, these are countries in which there is a greatly increased risk of infection and thus a risk of contracting Covid-19. Virus mutants or the new infection rate are decisive: 200 new corona cases per 100,000 inhabitants over seven days mark the limit. In some cases, the travel warning does not apply to the entire country, but does apply to individual areas. The Foreign Office then publishes a so-called partial travel warning.

Do you want to travel? Then you will find on the website of the Federal Foreign Office which travel and safety information applies to your country of travel.

In the event of a travel warning, vacationers can usually cancel their booked package tour free of charge. The decisive factor here, however, is the legal assessment as an “extraordinary, unavoidable circumstance”. If you no longer want to travel, please contact your tour operator or travel agent.

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