TRAVEL FOR CYPRIOTS WITHOUT A COVID TEST

 Filenews 19 August 2020 -Theano Thiopoulou

There are 12 European countries that have Cyprus on the green list and this means that cypriots who travel to them are not subject to control for coronavirus and quarantine.

It is travel to some countries that do not need the complicated procedures of the tests while in cases where Cyprus is on the "orange" or "red" list Cypriot citizens are quarantined.

Of course, if a country has Cyprus in the "green" it does not mean that Cyprus follows the same policy. It may have the country in red which implies that on arrival in Cyprus it needs a crown test or even quarantine.

Greece, a popular destination for Cypriots either for tourist reasons or for study purposes has Cypriot citizens in the green category. This means that Cypriots can enter the country without restrictions and without the certification paper for COVID 19 examination. The same is true of the United Kingdom.

It is worth noting, of course, that the epidemiological characteristics of each country are assessed by the competent authorities of the other countries and a change of category can be made accordingly. Each State shall take into account the number of new diagnoses, the number of laboratory tests, the mortality rate per 100,000 inhabitants, the estimated prevalence and incidence and classification by the World Health Organisation (WHO), as presented in valid databases.

According to the European Union 'reopen' website, Cypriots who want to travel to Austria, Denmark, Finland [until 24/8], France, Germany, the Czech Republic and Italy are also free to travel without tests and restrictions. Also, travel to Bulgaria from EU countries is allowed without restrictions. From 1 July European citizens visiting Croatia as well as people with an EU residence permit can enter the country without restrictions. In the Czech Republic entry from EU countries is allowed without restrictions, with the exception of Romania and from 24/8, Spain. In Estonia, for people without symptoms it depends on the country from which they began their journey or which countries they crossed. If they left or crossed a country with a crown virus infection rate of more than 16, the restriction on free movement applies to them for two weeks upon arrival in Estonia.

Cyprus has 25.2 based on the list given by Estonia. For Ireland all travel to and from the country should be avoided. In Lithuania, foreigners arriving from countries where the COVID-19 incidence rate exceeds 25 cases per 100,000 inhabitants should give a negative result to a coronavirus test carried out in the last three days prior to their arrival. Portugal accepts travellers arriving from European Union countries without presenting a COVID 19 test. In order for a Cypriot to travel to Belgium, he must have taken mandatory tests.