International travellers likely required to be fully vaccinated for entering the U.S.

Friday, August 6, 2021

According to latest reports from the White House, the Biden administration is currently developing a plan that would require most international travelers from all countries to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 to enter the U.S. after its reopening.

As of now, the U.S. is continuing to maintain entry restrictions for international travellers due to the spread of the delta variant and rising domestic cases of the coronavirus. The new plan would be executed when the U.S. begins to lift restrictions on international travel.

The White House spokesperson said that interagency working groups are currently working to develop a plan for “a consistent and safe international travel policy” that would involve a phased approach and would require foreign nationals traveling to the U.S. to be fully vaccinated “with limited exceptions.”

The official mentioned that the interagency working groups are currently developing a policy and planning process to be prepared for when the time is right to transition to the new system. However, as of now it is unclear precisely when the U.S. will lift restrictions on travel from Mexico, Canada, Europe and other countries.

The White House said in late July that it would keep restrictions in place, citing the delta variant. After seeing declining active cases from the start of the year, coronavirus cases have been on the rise again as vaccination rates have slowed. The Biden administration is working to convince millions of eligible Americans who have not yet gotten vaccinated to do so as quickly as possible. 

Currently, about 70 percent of U.S. adults have received at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccine. States like Florida, Texas and Arkansas are also seeing large numbers of coronavirus infections. While the U.S. has kept restrictions in place, other countries have moved to open their borders to vaccinated travelers. The European Union is allowed entry of vaccinated U.S. travelers, and so has the United Kingdom and Canada.

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