US will Lift Travel Ban for Vaccinated EU, UK Citizens on November 8

Photo source: Lufthansa

The United States will open to foreign nationals that are fully vaccinated, including from the UK and Europe, from November 8.

According to White House spokesperson Kevin Munoz, the new travel policy that requires vaccination for foreign national travelers to the United States will apply to both international air travel and land travel.

The announcement opens travel to the United States for many who have been locked out for the past 18 months as it overthrows the restrictions, taken to curb the spread of the coronavirus (Covid-19), which prevented anyone from entering the US if they had been in 33 specific countries including all Schengen countries in Europe – such as Germany, France, Italy, Spain and Greece, the UK, Ireland, Brazil, South Africa, India, and China within the last 14 days.

The new rules will see travelers having to show proof of vaccination against Covid-19 prior to boarding an airplane to the US and a negative Covid-19 test result performed within 72 hours prior to their trip.

Unvaccinated travelers will continue to be barred from entering the country.

According to reports, the new travel rules to enter the US will be announced by Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on Wednesday, October 20.

WTTC, IATA welcome the news

Photo source: WTTC

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) and the International Air Transport Association (IATA) both said it is “great news” that the US will welcome fully vaccinated foreign visitors, including from the EU and the UK.

“The next step is to create a pathway for non-vaccinated visitors to travel to the US,” IATA Director General Willie Walsh said.

WTTC President & CEO Julia Simpson said that “it has been a long time coming, but Travel & Tourism businesses on both sides of the Atlantic will be breathing a sigh of relief”.

According to Simpson, visitors from the EU and the UK contributed more than $46 billion to the US economy in 2019, showing just how critical the lifting of travel restrictions will be to the US recovery.

“WTTC believe governments should axe red lists completely, and instead base the risk on individuals rather than entire countries,” she added.

The news that the US will allow fully vaccinated travelers from certain countries to enter the United States from early November was announced on September 20. Following the announcement, a strong surge in airline ticket sales took off with very strong demand recorded for December.