Travelers heading to China from the United States will be required to undertake a COVID-19 test prior to their departure. The news comes around two weeks after the US allowed Chinese airlines to double their services between the two countries.
Traveling between the US and China has been a hot topic recently, with the number of flights on such routes being heavily controlled. Following the start of the COVID-19 virus in China, the country became one of the first to face flight restrictions from the United States will all arrivals initially being limited to a handful of international airports.
COVID-19 testing before travel
According to a new notice from the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the United States of America, passengers flying from the US to China must now undergo a COVID-19 test prior to travel. This new rule will come into force from September 15th. However, the process isn’t as simple as just carrying a negative certificate, as was required before.
The COVID-19 test must be obtained within 72 hours of travel. This is fairly common across the travel requirements of different countries. However, once the certificate has been issued, it must be sent to either the Chinese Embassy or one of its Consulates depending on where the test took place.
Alongside the test, the passenger must send a copy of their passport and a signed health declaration to the relevant authority no later than 24-hours before travel. The embassy or consulate will then verify the test results, and receive a copy of the health declaration by e-mail. This must then be carried by the passenger while traveling. Given that the Chinese Embassy says that the health declaration is usually processed in one business day, the time frame to get the test, confirmation, and to travel may be quite tight.
Flights slowly increasing
The number of flights between the US and China is slowly growing as demand continues to return. Just last week, Simple Flying reported that a new analysis suggests that China’s domestic aviation industry may have almost made a full recovery.
Earlier in August, United Airlines revealed that it would be doubling its flight frequency to Shanghai from San Francisco. From yesterday, September 4th, the US airline has been operating four flights per week on the route as opposed to two.
At the time, Patrick Quayle, United’s vice president of International Network and Alliances said,
“United has served mainland China for more than three decades and we look forward to continuing to connect customers traveling between the U.S. and Shanghai with two additional flights beginning in September.”
What do you make of the new testing rules? Do you think passengers will have enough time to complete the process? Let us know in the comment section!
