Greece’s 7-day Quarantine Rule for Air Arrivals Extended to February 8

Greece is extending the mandatory 7-day quarantine rule for all international travelers arriving by air.

In an announcement on Friday, the Hellenic Civil Aviation Authority (HCAA) issued an update for its Covid-19 aviation directives (NOTAMS) that includes information on travel restrictions for all international flights and extends the 7-day quarantine measure for all arrivals from abroad.

Among the updates, the HCAA highlights that the directive for arrivals from Israel has withdrawn the previous weekly limit of 10,000 passengers allowed in Greece per week from that country.

All travel restrictions for domestic and international flights have been announced by the HCAA to curb the spread of the coronavirus (Covid-19) in the country.

All flying restrictions extended for 2 weeks

Moreover, the HCAA said that all previously announced travel restrictions will remain in place until February 8 at midnight.

More specifically:

PLF remains mandatory
The submission of the Passenger Locator Form (PLF) by all passengers of international flights to Greece remains mandatory.
The rule also applies to Greek citizens and permanent residents of Greece who travel abroad on flights (outbound travel) are also required to fill out the PLF form before their departure from Greece and present it at border checkpoints.

7-day quarantine rule
All passengers entering Greece until February 8 from any foreign country, including European Union member states, must self-isolate either at their home (for permanent residents) or at the place of temporary residence declared on the PLF, for 7 days. If they are to stay in Greece for a shorter period, the temporary restriction is valid for that period of time, ie until their departure.
ALL travelers from abroad will also have to submit a negative Covid-19 test result (PCR) performed up to 72 hours before arrival in Greece and may also be requested to take a rapid Covid-19 test upon entry (depending on the data provided on the PLF forms). If a passenger is selected for a rapid test and tests positive then he/she must quarantine for a total of 14 days.

UK arrivals
All travelers arriving to Greece from the UK must take a rapid Covid-19 test upon entry to the country and self-isolate for 7 days.
After the seventh day of quarantine, passengers of UK flights will have to take a new PCR test. If the test is positive the quarantine will be in force for 14 days. If the test is negative the quarantine ends.

Israelis and Russians added to list of non-EU citizens allowed in Greece
The HCAA provided an update to the temporary ban on entry into Greece from outside the European Union, adding Israel and Russia to a list of countries exempt from the restriction.
Citizens from the following 11 countries are excluded from the ban: UK, Singapore, Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Rwanda, South Korea, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, Russian Federation and Israel.

Arrivals from Russia
Only 500 permanent residents of Russia per week are allowed to enter Greece on flights landing (only) at the airports of Athens, Thessaloniki and Heraklion.

In addition, the HCAA announced that flights between Greece – Turkey and Greece – Catalonia, Spain, remain suspended.

Also, all flights to and from Greece from Albania and North Macedonia will continue to operate only through Athens International Airport (AIA). Until the restriction is lifted there will be no routes from those countries to any other Greek airports.