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Covid-19 related travel restrictions will be extended until at least April.

US extends Covid travel restrictions until April

The current requirements to enter America, which were set to be scrapped at the start of the year, will continue into April 2023.

In contrast to a majority of countries worldwide, the United States still imposes Covid-19 related travel restrictions , which requires anyone entering the country to be fully vaccinated , and those without proof may be turned away. The US government had outlined plans to scrap these rules on January 8; however, subsequently, the Transport Security Association (TSA) announced they would be extending them until at least April 10 . The rules apply to any non-American travellers wanting to visit the country and does not apply to unvaccinated US citizens or children under 17 years old. All airlines continue to be advised to check passengers’ proof of vaccination before departure and bar anyone without proof from boarding.

Reaction to China´s reopening

The rules have been in place since October 2021, one month prior to America’s planned reopening to international visitors. Although unconfirmed, due to the timing of the announcement, it is believed the extension has been implemented in reaction to China’s reopening . After removing restrictions and reopening borders this month, China has seen a wave of Covid-19 infections and many countries have imposed similar restrictions, although these are targeted specifically at visitors travelling from China.

ESTA visa waiver

Some countries, particularly in Europe have made changes so that visitors from China must also present negative test results before entering the country. On top of its Covid-related travel requirements, entry to the US also requires an ESTA visa waiver which can be applied for online . However, travellers who have visited Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen since March 2021 are not eligible for an ESTA and need to apply for a full visa at a US Embassy.

On top of this, there is current confusion surrounding the requirements for travellers who have visited Cuba . The US government website states that travellers who have been to Cuba are no longer eligible for an ESTA, as the country was designated a ‘state sponsor of terrorism’ under Donald Trump’s reforms in 2021. However, sources are mixed on whether this applies to travel to Cuba after 2011 or after 2021. Tourists visiting America should be prepared to present their ESTA and proof of full vaccination such as a certificate from an approved international body.

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Frequently Asked Questions: Guidance for Travelers to Enter the U.S.

Updated Date: April 21, 2022

Since January 22, 2022, DHS has required non-U.S. individuals seeking to enter the United States via land ports of entry and ferry terminals at the U.S.-Mexico and U.S.-Canada borders to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 and provide proof of vaccination upon request.  On April 21, 2022, DHS announced that it would extend these requirements. In determining whether and when to rescind this order, DHS anticipates that it will take account of whether the vaccination requirement for non-U.S. air travelers remains in place.

These requirements apply to non-U.S. individuals who are traveling for essential or non-essential reasons. They do not apply to U.S. citizens, Lawful Permanent Residents, or U.S. nationals.

Effective November 8, 2021, new air travel requirements applied to many noncitizens who are visiting the United States temporarily. These travelers are also required to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination. All air travelers, including U.S. persons, must test negative for COVID-19 prior to departure. Limited exceptions apply. See  CDC guidance  for more details regarding air travel requirements.

Below is more information about what to know before you go, and answers to Frequently Asked Questions about cross-border travel.

Entering the U.S. Through a Land Port of Entry or Ferry Terminal

Q. what are the requirements for travelers entering the united states through land poes.

A:  Before embarking on a trip to the United States, non-U.S. travelers should be prepared for the following:

• Possess proof of an approved COVID-19 vaccination as outlined on the  CDC  website.
• During border inspection, verbally attest to their COVID-19 vaccination status. 
• Bring a  Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative  compliant border crossing document, such as a valid passport (and visa if required), Trusted Traveler Program card, a Department of State-issued Border Crossing Card, Enhanced Driver’s License or Enhanced Tribal Card when entering the country. Travelers (including U.S. citizens) should be prepared to present the WHTI-compliant document and any other documents requested by the CBP officer.

 Q. What are the requirements to enter the United States for children under the age of 18 who can't be vaccinated?

A:  Children under 18 years of age are excepted from the vaccination requirement at land and ferry POEs.

Q: Which vaccines/combination of vaccines will be accepted?

A:  Per CDC guidelines, all Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved and authorized vaccines, as well as all vaccines that have an Emergency Use Listing (EUL) from the World Health Organization (WHO), will be accepted.

Accepted Vaccines:

• More details are available in CDC guidance  here .
• 2 weeks (14 days) after your dose of an accepted single-dose COVID-19 vaccine;
• 2 weeks (14 days) after your second dose of an accepted 2-dose series;
• 2 weeks (14 days) after you received the full series of an accepted COVID-19 vaccine (not placebo) in a clinical trial;
• 2 weeks (14 days) after you received 2 doses of any “mix-and-match” combination of accepted COVID-19 vaccines administered at least 17 days apart.

Q. Is the United States requiring travelers to have a booster dose to be considered fully vaccinated for border entry purposes?

A:  No. The CDC guidance for “full vaccination” can be found here.

Q: Do U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents need proof of vaccination to return to the United States via land POEs and ferry terminals?

A:  No. Vaccination requirements do not apply to U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, or Lawful Permanent Residents (LPRs). Travelers that exhibit signs or symptoms of illness will be referred to CDC for additional medical evaluation.

Q: Is pre- or at-arrival COVID testing required to enter the United States via land POEs or ferry terminals?

A: No, there is no COVID testing requirement to enter the United States via land POE or ferry terminals. In this respect, the requirement for entering by a land POE or ferry terminal differs from arrival via air, where there is a requirement to have a negative test result before departure.

Processing Changes Announced on January 22, 2022 

Q: new changes were recently announced. what changed on january 22.

A:  Since January 22, 2022, non-citizens who are not U.S. nationals or Lawful Permanent Residents have been required to be vaccinated against COVID-19 to enter the United States at land ports of entry and ferry terminals, whether for essential or nonessential purposes. Previously, DHS required that non-U.S. persons be vaccinated against COVID-19 to enter the United States for nonessential purposes.  Effective January 22, all non-U.S. individuals, to include essential travelers, must be prepared to attest to vaccination status and present proof of vaccination to a CBP officer upon request. DHS announced an extension of this policy on April 21, 2022.

Q: Who is affected by the changes announced on January 22?

A: This requirement does not apply to U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, or U.S. Lawful Permanent Residents. It applies to other noncitizens, such as a citizen of Mexico, Canada, or any other country seeking to enter the United States through a land port of entry or ferry terminal.

Q: Do U.S. citizens need proof of vaccination to return to the United States via land port of entry or ferry terminals?

A: Vaccination requirements do not apply to U.S. Citizens, U.S. nationals or U.S. Lawful Permanent Residents. Travelers that exhibit signs or symptoms of illness will be referred to CDC for additional medical evaluation. 

Q: What is essential travel?

A:  Under the prior policy, there was an exception from temporary travel restrictions for “essential travel.” Essential travel included travel to attend educational institutions, travel to work in the United States, travel for emergency response and public health purposes, and travel for lawful cross-border trade (e.g., commercial truckers). Under current policy, there is no exception for essential travel.

Q: Will there be any exemptions? 

A: While most non-U.S. individuals seeking to enter the United States will need to be vaccinated, there is a narrow list of exemptions consistent with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Order in the air travel context.

• Certain categories of individuals on diplomatic or official foreign government travel as specified in the CDC Order
• Children under 18 years of age;
• Certain participants in certain COVID-19 vaccine trials as specified in the CDC Order;   
• Individuals with medical contraindications to receiving a COVID-19 vaccine as specified in the CDC Order;
• Individuals issued a humanitarian or emergency exception by the Secretary of Homeland Security;
• Individuals with valid nonimmigrant visas (excluding B-1 [business] or B-2 [tourism] visas) who are citizens of a country with limited COVID-19 vaccine availability, as specified in the CDC Order
• Members of the U.S. Armed Forces or their spouses or children (under 18 years of age) as specified in the CDC Order; and
• Individuals whose entry would be in the U.S. national interest, as determined by the Secretary of Homeland Security.

Q: What documentation will be required to show vaccination status?

A:  Non-U.S. individuals are required to be prepared to attest to vaccination status and present proof of vaccination to a CBP officer upon request regardless of the purpose of travel.

The current documentation requirement remains the same and is available on the CDC website . Documentation requirements for entry at land ports of entry and ferry terminals mirror those for entry by air.

Q: What happens if someone doesn’t have proof of vaccine status?

A: If non-U.S. individuals cannot present proof of vaccination upon request, they will not be admitted into the United States and will either be subject to removal or be allowed to withdraw their application for entry.

Q: Will incoming travelers be required to present COVID-19 test results?

A: There is no COVID-19 testing requirement for travelers at land border ports of entry, including ferry terminals.

Q: What does this mean for those who can't be vaccinated, either due to age or other health considerations? 

A: See CDC guidance for additional information on this topic. Note that the vaccine requirement does not apply to children under 18 years of age.

Q: Does this requirement apply to amateur and professional athletes?

A: Yes, unless they qualify for one of the narrow CDC exemptions.

Q: Are commercial truckers required to be vaccinated?

A: Yes, unless they qualify for one of the narrow CDC exemptions. These requirements also apply to bus drivers as well as rail and ferry operators.

Q. Do you expect border wait times to increase?

A:  As travelers navigate these new travel requirements, wait times may increase. Travelers should account for the possibility of longer than normal wait times and lines at U.S. land border crossings when planning their trip and are kindly encouraged to exercise patience.

To help reduce wait times and long lines, travelers can take advantage of innovative technology, such as facial biometrics and the CBP OneTM mobile application, which serves as a single portal for individuals to access CBP mobile applications and services.

Q: How is Customs and Border Protection staffing the ports of entry? 

A: CBP’s current staffing levels at ports of entry throughout the United States are commensurate with pre-pandemic levels. CBP has continued to hire and train new employees throughout the pandemic. CBP expects some travelers to be non-compliant with the proof of vaccination requirements, which may at times lead to an increase in border wait times. Although trade and travel facilitation remain a priority, we cannot compromise national security, which is our primary mission. CBP Office of Field Operations will continue to dedicate its finite resources to the processing of arriving traffic with emphasis on trade facilitation to ensure economic recovery.

Q: What happens if a vaccinated individual is traveling with an unvaccinated individual?  

A:  The unvaccinated individual (if 18 or over) would not be eligible for admission.

Q: If I am traveling for an essential reason but am not vaccinated can I still enter?

A:  No, if you are a non-U.S. individual. The policy announced on January 22, 2022 applies to both essential and non-essential travel by non-U.S. individual travelers. Since January 22, DHS has required that all inbound non-U.S. individuals crossing U.S. land or ferry POEs – whether for essential or non-essential reasons – be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 and provide related proof of vaccination upon request.

Q: Are sea crew members on vessels required to have a COVID vaccine to disembark?

A:  Sea crew members traveling pursuant to a C-1 or D nonimmigrant visa are not excepted from COVID-19 vaccine requirements at the land border. This is a difference from the international air transportation context.

Entering the U.S. via Air Travel

Q: what are the covid vaccination requirements for air passengers to the united states  .

A:  According to CDC requirements [www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/noncitizens-US-air-travel.html | Link no longer valid], most noncitizens who are visiting the United States temporarily must be fully vaccinated prior to boarding a flight to the United States. These travelers are required to show proof of vaccination. A list of covered individuals is available on the CDC website.  

Q: What are the COVID testing requirements for air passengers to the United States?  

A:  Effective Sunday, June 12 at 12:01 a.m. ET, CDC will no longer require pre-departure COVID-19 testing for U.S.-bound air travelers.

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What’s at Stake as the US Ends Covid Emergency Measures

The US has started unwinding its Covid-19 crisis measures that have expanded access to health care for millions of people since the beginning of the outbreak in the country in 2020. President Joe Biden on April 10 signed into law a measure that terminated the country’s national emergency order. The White House on May 11 plans to end a separate, more consequential public health emergency and disband its Covid response team. A policy that increased health coverage for low-income people has already been discontinued. So has the federal government’s purchase of Covid vaccines and treatments. While some rules around telehealth will remain relaxed, others are being tightened up again. Undoing Covid emergency rules also has implications for US immigration policy.

1. What’s Covid’s toll in the US now?

Covid has killed more than 1.1 million people in the US as of early April. About 250 people were dying each day, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, compared with about 3,400 at the peak in January 2021. 

2. What were the emergency declarations? 

• In January 2020, then-Health Secretary Alex Azar declared a public health emergency. That allowed his department to ease or waive certain requirements and put in place flexibilities to address the Covid outbreak.

• Azar the next month issued a separate emergency declaration that allowed the Food and Drug Administration to grant emergency use authorizations for Covid products. No plans have been announced for terminating this declaration, which has made Covid vaccines, treatments and diagnostics — which otherwise might have taken years to bring to market — available more quickly. Should the declaration be revoked, so will the emergency clearances for those products. With that in mind, many companies, like Pfizer, Moderna and Gilead, have sought to get their products approved through formal, more permanent pathways.

• Then-President Donald Trump issued a national emergency declaration in March 2020 that allowed the federal government to mobilize resources and provide support for activities beyond the confines of public health. For example, the declaration enabled the extension of deadlines for workers to sign up to keep health insurance after leaving a job. The Biden Administration had intended to keep the national emergency in effect until May 11, but the president signed into law a Republican-backed measure that ended it on April 10.

3. Why did health coverage for the poor increase in the pandemic? 

Typically, states regularly assess whether those enrolled in Medicaid, the government health program for the poor, remain eligible. In the pandemic, Congress substantially increased federal funding to state Medicaid programs, and in return, states suspended the enrollment review process for the duration of the public health emergency. Relaxing eligibility requirements this way increased Medicaid enrollment in every state. Overall, enrollment in Medicaid and the related Children’s Health Insurance Program grew by 28% since the start of the pandemic to more than 91 million people, according to data from the Kaiser Family Foundation.

4. What’s changed with Medicaid rules?

In its year-end spending bill, Congress decoupled this new flexibility from the public health emergency and tightened Medicaid enrollment provisions as of March 31. States are no longer required to keep people enrolled — and some will now begin the long process of re-determining Medicaid eligibility for millions. (Arkansas, Arizona, New Hampshire, South Dakota and Idaho will begin terminations in April, while most other states will launch the process in the summer). Enrollees will be required to verify information ranging from income to household size. 

5. How many people will be affected by the Medicaid change?

The Kaiser Family Foundation estimates between 5 million and 14 million people could lose Medicaid coverage. The Department of Health and Human Services has estimated that as many as 15 million people could be removed from the program. The Georgetown University Health Policy Institute estimates almost 7 million children and teens are at risk of losing coverage. Some people leaving Medicaid may qualify for other coverage, including through employers or Affordable Care Act markets.

6. How will payment for Covid vaccines and treatments change?

Throughout the pandemic, the US government purchased supplies of Covid vaccines and treatments, which, for the most part, have been offered to people without out-of-pocket costs. That’s about to change. In the absence of new funding for these products from Congress, the Biden administration will stop procuring them, leaving their purchase and distribution to the market. For now, there’s sufficient supply of government-purchased Covid vaccines and treatments such that access “will generally not be affected,” the health department said in February. 

7. What happens once government-purchased supplies run out? 

When that happens, most Americans will get their Covid vaccines and treatments through private health insurance plans or federal health programs — such as Medicaid and Medicare, the program for the elderly — as they already do with annual flu immunizations. Covid vaccines will continue to be provided to older Americans via Medicare Part B without cost sharing, and Medicaid will cover all vaccines and treatments without cost sharing through Sept. 30, 2024. Thereafter, cost may vary by state. For those with private insurance, out-of-pocket expenses for treatments could vary depending on their plan. 

8. What about those with no health coverage?

Those without health insurance may face high out-of-pocket costs. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s “Vaccines For Children” program will continue to offer free immunizations for kids. The Biden administration has proposed a similar program for US adults. CDC Director Rochelle Walensky has raised concerns about access challenges for adults who are inadequately insured. However, Pfizer Inc. and Moderna Inc. have said they will provide their Covid vaccines for free to uninsured people in the US via their patient assistance programs. 

9. Who will pay for Covid tests?

The public health emergency allowed Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries to receive free, rapid over-the-counter Covid tests, and the Biden administration later required private insurance companies to cover the tests without out-of-pocket costs. After the emergency order ends on May 11, Medicare beneficiaries won’t be able to get free tests, unless they are ordered by a health provider. (There may be cost associated with the doctor’s visit, though). Medicaid, meanwhile, will continue to cover at-home and PCR tests until September 2024, after which coverage will vary from state to state. For those with private insurance, costs will depend on their plans. The Department of Health and Human Services issued guidance encouraging employer health plan sponsors and health insurers to continue covering Covid tests after the emergency ends without requiring beneficiaries to pay out-of-pocket costs. Depending on supply, the US may continue to distribute free Covid tests from the Strategic National Stockpile. Each US household can still order four free at-home rapid tests at covid.gov/tests. 

10. What’s happening with the rules about telehealth? 

Throughout the pandemic, Medicare beneficiaries were able to receive telehealth care from their homes, with new laws expanding the types of facilities that could provide such services as well as the list of services that would be covered. Congress has ensured in its year-end spending plan that most Medicare telehealth flexibilities will remain in place until December 2024. Meanwhile, most states made Medicaid telehealth flexibilities permanent. With private health insurance, coverage continues to vary by plan. Some rules about telehealth prescriptions may be changing. 

11. What prescription practices are being reconsidered?

The public health emergency allowed telehealth providers to prescribe certain controlled substances virtually or over the phone without conducting an in-person medical exam. The Drug Enforcement Administration in February proposed new rules that would no longer allow providers to prescribe Adderall, Vicodin or OxyContin for example, if the patient never had an in-person visit. For another drug class — which includes testosterone and buprenorphine, a treatment for opioid use disorder that can prevent withdrawal symptoms — a clinician could order an initial 30-day supply of the medication via telemedicine, but would need an in-person visit to provide a refill. The DEA is reviewing public comments on the proposed rules.

12. How is immigration policy impacted?

The end of the public health emergency will also mean the end of Title 42, a obscure public health order dusted off under Trump at the start of the pandemic that made it easier for authorities to expel undocumented migrants. In about half of the apprehensions of migrants in fiscal 2022, in which the US border patrol encountered a record 2.2 million people entering the country without authorization, authorities used the rule to quickly send the individuals back to their homeland or to the country from which they entered the US. The alternative is to process apprehended migrants under regular immigration law. That gives them a chance to remain in the US at least temporarily in order to make long-shot bids at gaining asylum, available to people who can show they have a legitimate fear of persecution at home. 

--With assistance from Josh Wingrove, John Tozzi and Madison Muller.

More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com

©2023 Bloomberg L.P.

Biden signs bill ending Covid national emergency

President Joe Biden on Monday signed into law a Republican-backed resolution that immediately terminates the coronavirus national emergency first declared in March 2020.

The measure ends the national emergency a month earlier than the Biden administration had planned. A separate public health emergency tied to Covid will remain until May 11.

Biden had signaled his opposition to ending the national emergency but said he wouldn’t veto the legislation.

The Senate passed the measure 68-23  at the end of March, with nearly two dozen Democrats supporting it.

The House passed the legislation, introduced by Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., in late January in a  220-210 vote  along party lines.

The vote to end the national emergency before May has caused the administration to wind down some of its emergency programs more quickly over the past few months and notify those affected by the change, a senior administration official said.

Among the affected programs are mortgage forbearance at the Department of Housing and Urban Development and relaxed Veteran Affairs Department requirements for home visits to evaluate eligibility for caregiver assistance, the official said. An end to the public health emergency next month is expected to have a broader impact on policies like the Trump-era immigration program known as Title 42 , the official added.

Since he took office, Biden has come under harsh criticism from Republicans over his administration's Covid response, particularly over vaccination and mask requirements.

“House Republicans are keeping our Commitment to America,” House Speaker Kevin McCarthy tweeted earlier Monday, referring to a list of Republican priorities that includes removing the national emergency and ending the military vaccination mandate.

Congress passed a military policy bill in December directing the Defense Department to lift a Covid vaccination mandate for service members.

House Republicans have also probed the origins of the coronavirus and requested documents from top Biden officials, including Dr. Anthony Fauci, who oversaw the virus response.

CORRECTION (April 10, 2023, 10 p.m. ET): A previous version of this article misstated Kevin McCarthy’s congressional role. He is the House speaker, not the minority leader.

Zoë Richards is the evening politics reporter for NBC News.

Places the U.S. Government Warns Not to Travel Right Now

You may want to reconsider traveling to these countries right now.

Do Not Travel to These Countries

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Crime, civil unrest and terrorism are common risk factors for countries that end up on the State Department's "Do Not Travel" advisory list.

In 2024, tourism across the globe is “well on track” to return to pre-pandemic levels, according to projections by UN Tourism.

Global conflicts and natural disasters , ranging from a series of coups across Africa to catastrophic earthquakes in the Middle East affected international travel patterns throughout 2023. Still, international tourist arrivals reached 87% of pre-pandemic levels in 2023, according to estimates by UN Tourism .

In January 2024 alone, about 4.6 million U.S. citizens left the country for international destinations, 17% higher than the same month in 2019, according to the International Trade Administration . But some destinations warrant more caution than others.

On Oct. 19, 2023, following the outbreak of war between Israel and Gaza and flaring tensions in the region, the U.S. State Department issued a worldwide caution advisory due to “increased tensions in various locations around the world, the potential for terrorist attacks, demonstrations or violent actions against U.S. citizens and interests.” Prior to this update, the most recent worldwide caution advisory was issued in 2022 after a U.S. strike killed Ayman al-Zawahiri, Osama bin Laden’s successor as leader of Al Qaeda, causing “a higher potential for anti-American violence.” The worldwide caution advisory remains in effect.

The U.S. State Department also issues individual travel advisory levels for more than 200 countries globally, continually updating them based on a variety of risk indicators such as health, terrorism and civil unrest. Travel advisory levels range from Level 1, which means exercise normal precautions, to Level 4, which means do not travel there.

About 10% of countries – 19 total – have a Level 4: “Do Not Travel” advisory as of Mar. 4. In Level 4 countries, the U.S. government may have “very limited ability” to step in should travelers’ safety or security be at risk, according to the State Department. Crime, civil unrest, kidnapping and terrorism are common risk factors associated with Level 4 countries.

So far in 2024, the State Department made changes to the existing Level 4 advisories for Myanmar, Iran and Gaza, and moved Niger and Lebanon off of the Level 4 list.

Places With a Level 4 Travel Advisory

These are the primary areas the U.S. government says not to travel to right now, in alphabetical order:

Jump to Place: Afghanistan Belarus Burkina Faso Central African Republic Myanmar (formerly Burma) Gaza Haiti Iran Iraq Libya Mali Mexico North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) Russia Somalia South Sudan Sudan Syria Ukraine Venezuela Yemen

Afghanistan: The Central Asian country is wrestling with “terrorism, risk of wrongful detention, kidnapping and crime,” according to the State Department. U.S. citizens are specifically at risk for wrongful detention and kidnapping. In 2022, the government reinstituted public floggings and executions, and women’s rights are disappearing under Taliban control. The U.S. Embassy in Kabul halted operations in August 2021. Since the Taliban took control , many forms of international aid have been halted . Meanwhile, in 2023, some of the year’s deadliest earthquakes killed more than 2,400 in Afghanistan while the country continues to face a years-long extreme drought.

Belarus: Belarus, which shares a western border with Russia and a southern border with Ukraine, has been flagged for “Belarusian authorities’ continued facilitation of Russia’s war against Ukraine, the buildup of Russian military forces in Belarus, the arbitrary enforcement of local laws, the potential of civil unrest, the risk of detention, and the Embassy’s limited ability to assist U.S. citizens residing in or traveling to Belarus.” The U.S. Embassy in Minsk halted operations in February 2022.

Burkina Faso: Terrorism, crime and kidnapping are plaguing this West African nation. Terrorist attacks may target hotels, restaurants and schools with little to no warning, and the East and Sahel regions of the country are under a state of emergency. In late November 2023, hundreds died in clashes between state security forces and rebels near the country’s border with Mali. In June, more than 2 million people in Burkina Faso were displaced due to “violence linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group.”

Central African Republic: While there have not been specific incidents of U.S. citizens targeted with violence or crime, violent crime and sudden closure of roads and borders is common. The advisory states that “Embassy Bangui’s limited capacity to provide support to U.S. citizens, crime, civil unrest, and kidnapping” is a factor in its assessment. Recent data from UNICEF suggests the country has the worst drinking water accessibility of all countries in 2022.

Myanmar (Formerly Burma): Armed conflict and civil unrest are the primary reasons to not travel to this Southeast Asian country, which experienced a military coup in early 2021. Limited health care resources, wrongful detentions and “areas with land mines and unexploded ordnance” are also listed as risk factors. After Ukraine and Israel, Myanmar had the highest conflict-related death toll in 2023.

Gaza : Hamas, a foreign terrorist organization as designated by the State Department, controls much of the Gaza Strip, which shares borders with both Israel and Egypt. On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas fighters broke across the border into Israel, killing hundreds of civilians and soldiers in a brazen attack that stunned Israelis. On Oct. 10, Israel hit the Gaza Strip with “the fiercest air strikes in its 75-year conflict” according to Reuters . The conflict has since escalated into war between Israel and Hamas, with regular Israeli airstrikes leading to extensive civilian casualties in Gaza. As of mid-December, nearly 85% of Gaza’s population were displaced from their homes, according to UN estimates . The region continues to face shortages of food , water, electricity and medical supplies , with conditions deemed “far beyond a humanitarian crisis.” The State Department warns of terrorism and armed conflict within Gaza’s borders.

Haiti: In July 2023, the Department of State ordered all non-emergency U.S. government personnel and family members to leave the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince in response to the increased risk of kidnapping and violent crime in the country , as well as armed conflict between gangs and police. The travel advisory states that cases of kidnapping “often involve ransom negotiations and U.S. citizen victims have been physically harmed during kidnappings.” The travel advisory also states that “U.S. citizens in Haiti should depart Haiti as soon as possible” given “the current security situation and infrastructure challenges.” A series of gang attacks in late September 2023 caused thousands to flee their homes, and many aid groups have been forced to cut or suspend operations amid escalating violence in recent months.

Iran: Terrorism, kidnapping and civil unrest are risk factors for all travelers to Iran, while U.S. citizens are specifically at risk for “arbitrary arrest.” U.S.-Iranian nationals such as students, journalists and business travelers have been arrested on charges of espionage and threatening national security. Executions in Iran rose sharply between 2021 and 2022, bringing the country’s total to nearly 580 people over the year, according to a report by Amnesty International released in May 2023.

Iraq: The State Department cites “terrorism, kidnapping, armed conflict [and] civil unrest” as cause for the country’s Level 4 distinction. Iraq’s northern borders, and its border with Syria, are especially dangerous. Since the escalation of conflict in neighboring Israel in October, there has been an increase in attacks against Iraqi military bases, which host U.S. troops and other international forces. In October 2023, non-emergency U.S. government personnel and eligible family members were ordered to leave the U.S. embassy in Baghdad.

Libya: Following the end of its dictatorship over a decade ago, Libya has been wrought with internal conflict between armed groups in the East and West. Armed conflict, civil unrest, crime, kidnapping and terrorism are all risk factors. U.S. citizens have been targets of kidnapping for ransom, with terrorists targeting hotels and airports frequented by Westerners. The U.S. Embassy in Tripoli halted operations in 2014. In mid-September 2023, floods, which some say were intensified by climate change , killed thousands in eastern Libya. Clashes between armed factions escalated across the country in the latter half of 2023, including in the capital city of Tripoli and in Benghazi.

Mali: After experiencing military coups in 2020 and 2021, crime, terrorism and kidnapping are all prevalent threats in this West African landlocked nation. In July 2022, non-emergency U.S. government employees and their families were ordered to leave the country due to higher risk of terrorist activity. A U.N. report in August 2023 said that military groups in the country, including both Mali security forces and possibly Russian Wagner mercenaries, were spreading terror through the use of violence against women and human rights abuses. Democratic elections were supposed to occur in February 2024, but Mali’s military junta postponed the plans indefinitely. In December, the U.N. officially ended a decade-long peacekeeping presence in the country, which had been among the agency’s deadliest missions, with hundreds of the mission personnel killed since 2013.

Mexico: Each state in Mexico is assessed separately for travel advisory levels. Six of the 32 states in Mexico are designated as Level 4: Colima, Guerrero, Michoacan, Sinaloa, Tamaulipas and Zacatecas. Crime and kidnapping are listed as the primary risk factors throughout the country. Nearly 112,000 people were missing across the country as of October, a number the U.N. has called “alarming.”

North Korea (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea): U.S. passports are not valid for travel “to, in, or through” this country, home to one of the world's longest-running dynastic dictatorships. The travel advisory states that the Level 4 distinction is due to “the continuing serious risk of arrest and long-term detention of U.S. nationals.” In July 2023, a U.S. soldier fled across the border into North Korea, where he is believed to be in North Korean custody, the first American detained in the North in nearly five years. He was returned to U.S. custody in September 2023.

Russia: The travel advisory for Russia cites its invasion of Ukraine , harassment of U.S. citizens by Russian government officials and arbitrary law enforcement as a few of the reasons for the Level 4 designation. Chechnya and Mount Elbrus are specifically listed as Level 4 regions. Terrorism, civil unrest, health, kidnapping and wrongful detention are all noted as risks.

Russia Invades Ukraine: A Timeline

Somalia: A severe drought resulting from five failed rainy seasons in a row killed 43,000 people in 2022, and caused a famine amid conflict with Islamist insurgents . Violent crime is common throughout Somalia , pirates frequent its coast off the Horn of Africa, and medical facilities, where they exist, have limited capacity. Crime, terrorism, civil unrest, health and kidnapping are all risk factors. In January 2024, some passengers aboard a U.N.-contracted helicopter were taken hostage by al-Shabaab militants after the vehicle crashed in central Somalia.

South Sudan: Crime, kidnapping and armed conflict are the primary risk factors for South Sudan, which separated from Sudan in 2011, making it the world’s newest country . Weapons are readily available, and travelers have been victims of sexual assault and armed robbery.

Sudan: The U.S. evacuated its embassy in Khartoum in April 2023, and the country closed its airspace due to the ongoing conflict in the country, only permitting humanitarian aid and evacuation efforts. Fighting has escalated in the region between two warring generals seeking to gain control after a military coup in 2021 ousted the country’s prime minister. Civil unrest is the primary risk factor for Africa’s third largest country by area. Crime, terrorism, kidnapping and armed conflict are also noted. The International Criminal Court began investigating alleged war crimes and violence against African ethnic groups in the country in 2023. Millions have fled their homes due to conflict, and the U.N. has said its efforts to provide aid have been hindered by a lack of support, safety and resources. As recently as December 2023, the United Nations warned of catastrophic famine , with millions of children at-risk for malnutrition .

Syria: The advisory states that “No part of Syria is safe from violence,” with terrorism, civil unrest, kidnapping, armed conflict and risk of unjust detention all potential risk factors. U.S. citizens are often a target for kidnappings and detention. The U.S. Embassy in Damascus halted operations in 2012. Fighting in neighboring Israel has escalated since October, and the conflict has spilled over into Syria, where the U.S. has carried out air strikes following drone and rocket attacks against American troops in Syria and Iraq, triggered by the Israel-Hamas war.

Ukraine: Russian setbacks in their invasion of Ukraine buoyed hopes in Ukraine in 2023. However, Ukraine is a Level 4 country due to Russia’s invasion, with crime and civil unrest also noted as risk factors. The country’s forces shot down two Russian fighter jets on Christmas Eve 2023, in a move Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said “sets the right mood for the entire year ahead.”

Venezuela: Human rights abuses and lack of health care plague this South American nation, which has been in a political crisis since 2014. In 2019, diplomatic personnel were withdrawn from the U.S. Embassy in Caracas. Threats in the country include crime, civil unrest, kidnapping, wrongful detention and poor health infrastructure.

Yemen: Six of the nine risk factors defined by the State Department – terrorism, civil unrest, health risks, kidnapping, armed conflict and landmines – are all present in Yemen. Despite private companies offering tourist visits to the Yemeni island of Socotra, the U.S. government argues those arranging such visits “are putting tourists in danger.” Civil war and cholera are also both present throughout the country. The U.S. Embassy in Sanaa halted operations in 2015. The country has experienced a relative lull in the civil war fighting, but as peace negotiations have gotten traction, flare ups in the fighting have jeopardized progress. Most recently, the U.S. and U.K. have carried out a series of airstrikes in the country, targeting Iran-backed Houthi sites.

Other Countries to Watch

Since Jan. 1, the State Department has updated travel advisories for 17 different countries as well as for the West Bank and Gaza, adding information about specific regions or risk factors, or simply renewing an existing advisory. Travel advisory levels can change based on several factors in a nation, such as increased civil unrest, policies that affect human rights or higher risks of unlawful detention.

The State Department has given about 25 countries an assessment of Level 3, meaning it recommends people “reconsider travel” to those destinations.

On Oct. 14, one week after the deadly Hamas attack on Israel, Israel and the West Bank were both moved from Level 2 to Level 3, while Gaza remains at Level 4. The region’s travel advisory was updated in November to reflect travel restrictions for certain government employees who have not already left the area, and it was updated again on Jan. 3.

Following the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war in early October, the U.S. State Department raised Lebanon ’s travel advisory level from a Level 3 to a Level 4 level due to “the unpredictable security situation related to rocket, missile, and artillery exchanges” between Israel and Hezbollah or other militant groups. In December, the U.S. Embassy in Beirut returned to normal staffing and presence, and on Jan. 29, the country was moved back to Level 3. Crime, terrorism, armed conflict, civil unrest, kidnapping and unexploded landmines are listed as the country’s primary risk factors. However, the country’s borders with Syria and with Israel, as well as refugee settlements within Lebanon, are specifically noted as Level 4 regions.

China became a Level 3 country in late 2020, with an update in December 2022 citing “the surge in COVID-19 cases, arbitrary enforcement of local laws, and COVID-19-related restrictions” as the reason for the advisory. In June 2023, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) was moved from the Level 3 to the Level 2 list, but travelers are still advised to be cautious in the area due to “arbitrary enforcement of local laws.” Meanwhile, Macau remains at Level 3.

Following an attempted coup in August 2023, Niger was elevated to Level 4 in August and the Department of State ordered all non-emergency U.S. government personnel and family members to leave the U.S. Embassy in Niamey. In early January 2024, the overall risk level for the country was lowered back to Level 3. Despite the new classification, the State Department still asks non-emergency government personnel and eligible family members to depart the country.

In mid-December 2023 there was an explosion at Guinea’s main fuel depot which has since affected access to health care and basic goods and services. The country was subsequently designated a Level 3 nation after having previously been Level 2. Concerns about civil unrest, health, crime and fuel shortages impacting local infrastructure were listed as the primary risk factors contributing to the change.

Several Level 3 countries are among the worst countries for human trafficking, as designated by the State Department’s annual Trafficking in Persons Report . Level 3 countries on this list include Papua New Guinea, Guinea Bissau, China and Chad. There are also nine Level 4 countries designated as among the worst for human trafficking: Afghanistan, Belarus, Iran, Myanmar, North Korea, Russia, Syria, South Sudan and Venezuela.

Over 70 countries are currently at Level 2, meaning the State Department recommends travelers “exercise increased caution” when traveling to those destinations.

Botswana became the newest Level 2 country on Feb. 26 after having previously been Level 1, with crime noted as the primary risk factor.

France, which saw nationwide protests throughout 2023, has civil unrest and terrorism noted as risk factors for its Level 2 status, and Sweden’s Level 2 status is associated with risks of terrorism.

The Level 2 travel advisory for the Bahamas was updated in January to reflect water safety concerns. The advisory warns that “activities involving commercial recreational watercraft, including water tours, are not consistently regulated” and notes that government personnel are “not permitted to use independently operated jet-ski rentals on New Providence and Paradise Islands.” It also warns visitors to be mindful of sharks, weather and water conditions. The advisory also says that crime is a primary risk factor with gang-on-gang violence contributing to high homicide rates in some areas. Visitors are asked to “be vigilant” and to not physically resist robbery attempts.

Bangladesh 's Level 2 travel advisory was updated in October 2023 to add a note about the country’s general election , which took place Jan. 7, 2024. The advisory states “demonstrations intended to be peaceful can turn confrontational and escalate into violence.” The U.S. has since claimed the country’s election was not free nor fair.

In November 2023, several Level 2 travel advisories were updated with new cautionary information. The advisory for Ghana was updated to reflect threats against LGBTQI+ travelers specifically, noting “anti-LGBTQI+ rhetoric and violence have increased in recent years.” Meanwhile, the advisory for South Africa was updated in February to note that routes recommended by GPS may be unsafe with higher risk for crime.

Turkmenistan was moved off of the Level 2 list to become the newest addition to the Level 1 list on Jan. 22, meaning normal precautions are recommended but there are no risk factors causing travelers to practice increased caution.

The State Department asks travelers to pay attention to travel advisory levels and alerts , review country information pages for their destinations and read related country security reports before going abroad.

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US extends border vaccine mandate until April 10

The US government has extended its Covid-19 vaccination requirement for air travelers until April 10, 2023 as the mandate was set to expire on Monday. 

An Emergency Amendment issued by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) cited the “risk that Covid-19” poses to the US healthcare system.

“The proclamation also required (Department of Homeland Security” to take steps to ensure airlines do not permit noncitizens barred from entry under the (mandate) to board an aircraft traveling to the United States,” wrote the TSA. 

“These policies are intended to limit the risk that COVID-19, including variants of the virus that causes COVID-19, is introduced, transmitted, and spread into and throughout the United States, potentially overwhelming United States healthcare and public health resources, endangering the health and safety of the American people, and threatening the security of our civil aviation system.”

Other western nations have done away with vaccination requirements for entry, including Canada, making the US an outlier in the developed world. 

Millions of Canadians remain prohibited from entering the US for having chosen to not receive a Covid-19 shot. At least 16.7% of the population is unvaccinated, while nearly 20% are not fully vaccinated – meaning they have not received a primary series of at least two Covid-19 vaccines. 

Last year, the US also extended its Covid-19 vaccination requirement for the land border , requiring Canadians to show proof of vaccination should they wish to cross the border. The mandate also extends to ferry terminals. 

At the same time, the nation’s southern border continues to allow migrants to enter into the country at an unprecedented rate. 

A recent report by the US Customs and Border Patrol found that the number of migrants entering Florida was five times as many as last year including those who have not been vaccinated. 

In a recent statement, President Joe Biden compared migrants crossing illegally into the US to Jewish people fleeing Nazi Germany in the 1930s. 

President Biden says migrants arriving at the southern border are being persecuted and should be allowed to seek refuge in the US like jews who escaped Nazi Germany's persecution. pic.twitter.com/hkjUiGrY4D — Moshe Schwartz (@YWNReporter) January 5, 2023

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COVID-19 Restrictions on U.S. Visas and Entry

This page tracks U.S. visa and entry restrictions related to COVID-19. See NAFSA's Coronavirus Critical Resources Page for related information and resources.

Page Contents

• COVID Vaccine Requirement for Nonimmigrant Air Travelers End May 11 (updated 05/10/2023)
• Geographic Proclamations No Longer in Effect (updated 12/31/2021)
• General Resumption of Visa Services (updated 10/21/2022)
• COVID-19 Surge Impacts Nonimmigrant Visa Appointments in China (updated 1/12/2023)
• Expansion of Renewal Visa Interview Waivers (updated 12/27/2022)
• Vaccination requirements for individuals traveling through land ports of entry at the Canadian and Mexican borders scheduled to end at 12:01 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) on May 12, 2023. (updated 05/10/2023)
• Mask Mandate Vacated (updated 4/18/2022)
• CDC Terminates COVID Test Requirement for Passengers Flights Originating in PRC ( updated 03/10/23) )
• COVID Viral Tests No Longer Required for Boarding All U.S.-Bound Flights Effective June 12, 2022 (updated 06/11/2022)

COVID Vaccine Requirement for Nonimmigrant Air Travelers

From November 8, 2021 through May 11, 2023, Presidential Proclamation 10294 of October 25, 2021, Advancing the Safe Resumption of Global Travel During the COVID-⁠19 Pandemic , required all "noncitizens who are nonimmigrants" entering the United States through an air POE to show proof that they were fully vaccinated with an acceptable COVID vaccine. Presidential Proclamation of May 9, 2023, Revoking the Air Travel COVID-⁠19 Vaccination Requirement , revokes Proclamation 10294's vaccination requirement effective 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on May 12, 2023.

For details, see NAFSA's page: COVID Vaccine and Test Requirements for U.S. Entry .

Geographic COVID-19 Proclamations No Longer in Effect

There are currently no geographic COVID-19 entry ban proclamations in effect. 

• See NAFSA's page COVID Vaccine and Test Requirements for U.S. Entry for other current COVID-19 entry requirements and restrictions.
• See NAFSA's page Archive: Geographic COVID-19 Proclamations Affecting Entry from Certain Countries for historical information on revoked geographic COVID-19 proclamations.

U.S. Consular and Visa Services

The Department of State Visa Office does not maintain a COVID-19 portal page with information dedicated to U.S. visas, although the DOS travel.state.gov website does list COVID-19-related news alerts on its U.S. Visa News page . This NAFSA page has highlights from that and other sources.

Advocacy on Visa Delays

Senators ask dos to address visa backlog for international students.

On August 10, 2021, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) led a group of 23 Senators in calling on Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the State Department to address the backlog of visas for international students, which grew significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Read NAFSA's press release .

NAFSA Meets With Department of State Regarding Consular Operations

On July 12, 2021, Esther Brimmer, DPhil, NAFSA's executive director and CEO, met with U.S. State Department Acting Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs, Edward Ramotowski, to discuss growing concerns regarding limited visa appointment availability and processing delays affecting international students and scholars planning to arrive on U.S. campuses this fall. NAFSA members can read a meeting summary .

General Resumption of Visa Services

The Department of State suspended routine visa services worldwide in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On July 13, 2020, DOS tweeted the following update from @TravelGov: " US embassies and consulates are beginning the phased resumption of routine visa services. The dates for each embassy or consulate will depend on local conditions. We are unable to provide details for each location. Please monitor the embassy or consulate website for updates. "

Read DOS' October 21, 2022 Update on Worldwide Visa Operations , transcribed below, for a DOS progress report.

" Update on Worldwide Visa Operations Last Updated: October 21, 2022 Worldwide Visa Operations Are Recovering Faster than Expected from the COVID-19 Pandemic The Department of State is successfully lowering visa interview wait times worldwide, following closures during the pandemic.  We’ve doubled our hiring of U.S. Foreign Service personnel to do this important work, we are recovering faster than projected, and this year we will reach pre-pandemic processing levels. Backlogs and Wait Times – How We Got Here As for many service providers, the COVID-19 pandemic forced profound reductions in the Department’s visa processing capacity in two main ways.  First, restrictions on travel to the United States, and local restrictions on public places like our overseas consular waiting rooms, curbed our ability to see visa applicants.  As most applicants are required by U.S. law to appear in person, these restrictions forced a reduction in the number of visa applications the Department could process. Second, as revenue from the application fees that fund visa processing operations was cut nearly in half, the Department was forced to leave more than 300 overseas consular officer positions unfilled in 2020 and 2021.  This further reduced the number of visa applications we could process.   Where We Are Now Since COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted, we are back in business worldwide.  Ninety-six percent of our embassies and consulates are again interviewing visa applicants, and we are processing nonimmigrant visa applications at 94 percent of pre-pandemic monthly averages and immigrant visa applications at 130 percent.  In the past 12 months (through September 30, 2022), we processed 8 million non-immigrant visas, well above our best-case projections.  We are well on the way to meeting and exceeding pre-pandemic visa processing capacity. Improved efficiency through Interview Waivers During the pandemic, the Department of State coordinated with the Department of Homeland Security to waive in-person interviews for several key visa categories, including for many students and temporary workers integral to supply chains.  In addition, applicants renewing nonimmigrant visas in the same classification within 48 months of their prior visa’s expiration are now eligible to apply without an in-person interview in their country of nationality or residence.  This has already reduced the wait time for an interview appointment at many embassies and consulates.  We estimate 30 percent of worldwide nonimmigrant visa applicants may be eligible for an interview waiver, freeing up in-person interview appointments for those applicants who still require an in-person interview. Building on Success Our focused efforts during the pandemic recovery period have yielded substantial results in facilitating travel to the United States.  Here are just some of our successes in the last year:   We reduced the immigrant visa (IV) backlog and reunited families:  As of October 2022, our consular sections worldwide have reduced the overall IV interview scheduling backlog by 25 percent (nearly 135,000 applicants), from its peak in July 2021.  Our embassies in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras eliminated an IV backlog of 22,000 applicants, and our consulate in Ciudad Juarez reduced the IV backlog for Mexican applicants by nearly 44 percent. We set records for student and academic exchange visitor visas.  Consular sections worldwide adjudicated more student visas in July 2022 than in any other month since 2016, with nearly 180,000 F, M, and academic J visas processed.  We exceeded pre-pandemic levels of visa processing for seasonal agricultural and nonagricultural workers who are vital links in the nation’s food supply chain and help ease labor shortages and inflation, with more than 395,000 H-2 visas issued in fiscal year 2022.   We issued thousands of crewmember visas essential for maintaining the global supply chains that support both the U.S. and global economy.  By Summer 2022, the issuance rates of crewmember visas were comparable to pre-pandemic levels. We issued all available E-3 visas in FY 2022, the immigrant visa category most sought by healthcare workers, who are crucial to the health and wellbeing of our communities.    We issued 54,334 Diversity Visas during the DV-2022 program year.  That is the highest number of DVs issued in 25 years, and all available DV numbers were exhausted when that total was combined with the domestic adjustments of status approved by USCIS under the DV program.   For Those Navigating Long Interview Wait Times Our goal is to provide a visa interview for every applicant who requires one, worldwide, in a reasonable timeframe.  Although our processing capacity is rebounding faster than projected, we know that visa applicants still face lengthy wait times at some embassies and consulates.  We urge any visa applicant who can travel to another embassy or consulate with shorter wait times to consider doing so.  There is no penalty for applying anywhere appointments are available, even outside your home country.  For the latest information about wait times, see https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas.html ."

To find embassy or consulate websites, go to https://www.usembassy.gov/ . The embassy links get you to the right embassy website, but you will have to do some clicking to find relevant COVID-19 information, as each embassy website is structured a bit differently.

COVID-19 Surge Impacts U.S. Mission China Visa Appointments

Update from U.S. Mission China Consular Services for December 15, 2022

"Due to the operational impacts caused by the surge of COVID-19 infections across China, U.S. Embassy Beijing and U.S. Consulate General Shanghai are providing passport and emergency citizen services only.  U.S. Consulates General Wuhan, Shenyang, and Guangzhou will only be providing emergency consular services until further notice. Please go to  https://china.usembassy-china.org.cn/services/ for more information on emergency consular services.  All routine Visa Services, with the exception of some previously scheduled for Consulate General Shanghai — are temporarily suspended; all regularly scheduled appointments at Embassy Beijing and the other Consulates General have been canceled."

Update from U.S. Mission China for December 27, 2022

"Consular Sections at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, and Consulates Guangzhou and Shenyang will resume routine consular services on January 3. Consulate General Wuhan has resumed providing limited U.S. citizen services. Shanghai will continue operating in emergency operations status until further notice. Please note that the number of appointments available for routine services will be based on staffing."

Expansion of Visa Interview Waivers

In a December 23, 2022 announcement , DOS extended until December 31, 2023 the discretionary authority given to consular officers to waive the in-person interview requirement for certain "F, M, and Academic J Visa Holders" and "Petition-Based H, L, O, P, and Q Visa Holders."

See NAFSA's page for additional details .

Controls at Land Ports of Entry on Canadian and Mexican Borders

From January 22, 2022 through May 11, 2023, all noncitizens who are nonimmigrants had to show proof that they were fully vaccinated with an acceptable COVID-19 vaccine under the same vaccine standards as air travelers. Unlike air travel, however, travelers entering through land or ferry ports of entry were never subject to a pre-entry COVID-19 testing requirement. The U.S.-Canada-Mexico COVID restrictions ceased to have effect as of 12:01 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) on May 12, 2023, under a pair of Federal Register Notice published on May 10, 2023. Canada notice | Mexico notice .

Airports and Flights

Mask mandate vacated.

Executive Order 13988 of January 21, 2021 , titled Executive Order on Promoting COVID-19 Safety in Domestic and International Travel, directed relevant agencies to incorporate, to the extent feasible, CDC recommendations on public modes of transportation and at ports of entry to the United States, including recommendations such as mask-wearing, physical distancing, appropriate ventilation, timely testing, and possibly self-quarantine after U.S. entry. See NAFSA's page on Executive Order 13988 for details.

CBP announced that on February 2, 2021 it began "enforcing the requirement that travelers wear face masks at all air, land and sea ports of entry in the United States in accordance with President Biden's Executive Order on Promoting COVID-19 Safety in Domestic and International Travel and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Order Regarding the Requirement for Persons to Wear Masks While on Public Conveyances and at Transportation Hubs...With limited exceptions, travelers must wear a face mask while physically present at a U.S. air, land, or sea port of entry. CBP Officers will require travelers to temporarily lower their mask during the inspection process to verify their identity."

However, On April 18, 2022, a Federal District Court judge in Tampa, Florida issued a ruling that the "Mask Mandate exceeds the CDC's statutory authority and violates the procedures required for agency rulemaking under the APA. Accordingly, the Court vacates the Mandate and remands it to the CDC." The case was Health Freedom Defense Fund, Inc. et al. v. Biden. Case 8:21-cv-01693-KKM-AEP.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) followed up with an April 18, 2022 statement saying: "Due to today’s court ruling, effective immediately, TSA will no longer enforce its Security Directives and Emergency Amendment requiring mask use on public transportation and transportation hubs. TSA will also rescind the new Security Directives that were scheduled to take effect tomorrow. CDC continues to recommend that people wear masks in indoor public transportation settings at this time."

CDC Terminates COVID Test Requirement For PRC Travelers

The Centers for Disease Control announced on March 10, 2023, that:

"On March 10, 2023, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) rescinded the Order titled “ Requirements for Negative Pre-Departure COVID-19 Test Result or Documentation of Recovery from COVID-19 for Aircraft Passengers Traveling to the United States from the People’s Republic of China .”

This rescission takes effect for flights departing to the United States from the People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Designated Airports* at or after 3:00pm ET (8:00pm GMT) on March 10, 2023 , and will be published in the Federal Register.

This means that starting March 10, 2023 at 3pm ET, air passengers will no longer need to get tested and show the negative COVID-19 test result, or show documentation of recovery from COVID-19, prior to boarding a flight to the U.S. from the People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong, and Macau, or through a Designated Airport.

* Designated Airports included Incheon International Airport (ICN) in Seoul, Republic of Korea; Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ) in Canada; and Vancouver International Airport (YVR) in Canada.

View the Rescission [PDF – 5 pages] ."

The requirement had applied to air passengers regardless of nationality and vaccination status, if they wanted to enter the United States on a flight:

• originating from the PRC, Hong Kong, or Macau; or
• transiting Incheon International Airport, Toronto Pearson International Airport, or Vancouver International Airport on their way to the United States, if they have been in the PRC in the last 10 days.

Covered travelers had to take an acceptable COVID test ("such as a PCR test or an antigen self-test administered and monitored by a telehealth service or a licensed provider and authorized by the Food and Drug Administration or the relevant national authority") no more than 2 days before their departure to the United States, and the traveler must show a negative test result to the airline upon departure.

CDC Rescinds Order Requiring all Passengers on U.S.-Bound Flights to Have COVID-19 Viral Test, Effective June 12, 2022

Proclamation 10294 of October 25, 2021 did not institute new negative COVID-19 test requirements. Rather, in addition to being subject to the proof of vaccination requirements instituted by Proclamation 10294, nonimmigrants who were entering the United States through an air port of entry prior to June 12, 2022 were also subject to CDC rules that required all travelers ( regardless of citizenship ) to present proof of receiving a negative pre-departure viral test result for COVID-19. Nonimmigrants subject to Proclamation 10294 of October 25, 2021 must, however, still show both proof of being fully vaccinated (or qualify under one of the narrow exceptions) in order to enter the United States.

Update from the CDC website :

"As of 12:01AM ET on June 12, 2022 , CDC will no longer require air passengers traveling from a foreign country to the United States to show a negative COVID-19 viral test or documentation of recovery from COVID-19 before they board their flight. For more information, see Rescission: Requirement for Negative Pre-Departure COVID-19 Test Result or Documentation of Recovery from COVID-19 for all Airline or Other Aircraft Passengers Arriving into the United States from Any Foreign Country ."

See NAFSA's page COVID Vaccine and Test Requirements for U.S. Entry for additional details.

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President Biden issued the original proclamation mandating COVID-19 vaccination in Oct. 25, 2021. The mandate was intended to replace prior policies restricting travelers based on their country of origin.

Claire Altieri, senior associate of Concentric by Ginkgo, sets up a testing site for COVID-19 variants at Tom Bradley International Terminal (Terminal B) at the Los Angeles airport on Monday, Jan. 2, 2023. (Gary Coronado/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images / Getty Images)

"Together with the Presidential Proclamation and the CDC Order, these policies are intended to limit the risk that COVID-19, including variants of the virus that causes COVID-19, is introduced, transmitted, and spread into and throughout the United States, potentially overwhelming United States healthcare and public health resources, endangering the health and safety of the American people, and threatening the security of our civil aviation system," the TSA wrote.

US EXTENDS COVID PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY WEEKS AFTER BIDEN DECLARED PANDEMIC 'OVER'

In October, the U.S. government extended the public health emergency status for the COVID-19 pandemic, weeks after President Biden's controversial remarks declaring the pandemic was "over."

Travelers make their way through Orlando International Airport during the busy Christmas holiday season on Dec. 28, 2022, in Florida. (Paul Hennessy/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images / Getty Images)

The move extends the order through Jan. 11, 2023, as health officials warn once more of a winter surge. 

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President Biden had said during a television interview ahead of the midterm elections that the COVID-19 pandemic "is over."

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FOX Business' Julia Musto contributed to this report.

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On May 1, 2023, the White House  announced  that the COVID-19 vaccination mandate for nonimmigrant international air travelers will end as of the end of the day on  May 11, 2023 . Implemented  in 2021  in response to the COVID-19 public health emergency, the mandate required all nonimmigrant travelers arriving in the US by air to provide proof of vaccination status to as a condition to entry into the country in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19 variants into the US and to allow the US healthcare system time to manage access to care in the event of increased COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations. Noting that COVID-19 related deaths are down 95%, and COVID-19 hospitalizations are down by 91%, each since January 2021, the White House announcement indicated that “we are in a different phase of our response to COVID-19” compared to January 2021, when the travel vaccination mandate went into effect. The White House’s termination of the international air travel COVID-19 vaccine requirement coincides with the  official end  to the COVID-19 public health emergency on  April 10, 2023 .

Correspondingly, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) also  announced  that  after May 11, 2023,  it will be rescinding its Title 19 restrictions, which required COVID-19 vaccination for non-U.S. travelers entering the country by land border and ferry terminals from Canada and Mexico. 

This means that as of May 12, 2023, nonimmigrants traveling to the U.S. by either air, land, or ferry transportation no longer will be required to provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination to enter the country.

In addition, on January 24, 2023, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS)  announced  that its COVID-19-related Flexibilities would end on  March 23, 2023 . These flexibilities allowed USCIS to consider what would otherwise be an untimely response to a request or notice received so long as it was received within 60 calendar days after the due date. The end of these accommodations means that after March 23, 2023, any response to a request or notice dated after March 23, 2023, must comply with the deadline requirements outlined in the requests. 

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The U.S. President has ended the pandemic-related state of national emergency

• Post author: Andrew D'Amours
• Post published: April 27, 2023
• Post category: Travel news / USA news
• Post comments: 103 Comments

OFFICIALLY CONFIRMED: The United States vaccination requirement is ending on May 11th at the end of the day! Most up-to-date post here .

The united states president has just ended the national emergency declaration related to the covid-19 pandemic, following votes by congress. first, biden had already announced that both of their states of emergency would end on may 11, so it’s not a huge development. second (and most importantly), this has nothing to do with their travel rules. so don’t get your hopes up too fast..

Logic would obviously dictate that their entry rule (the USA vaccination requirement ) be abolished at the same time as the public health emergency (the other state of emergency, which will end May 11). And that’s still the most likely scenario…

But at the same time, if they followed logic, they would have removed all rules a very long time ago already!

And they most certainly would include EVERY border in their vaccination requirement , which has never been the case all along as Flytrippers shared !!!

Here are the details about the USA state of emergency.

The current situation since November 2021

The U.S. vaccination requirement has been in place for almost 1.5 years. It was just extended once again to the theoretical date of May 11th, 2023.

You can read our article on the USA vaccination requirement renewal for all the details ; I won’t repeat them here. It is really VERY exhaustive!

CONFIRMED (finally): The US is ELIMINATING its vaccination requirement

Before that, in 2020, the United States declared:

• A national state of emergency
• A state of public health emergency

Those 2 states of emergency have nothing to do with travel rules, but a lot of people have a hard time understanding this. So many people mixed literally everything together in terms of travel rules during this pandemic.

The end of the states of emergency announced on January 30

On January 30th 2023, the American President confirmed that the USA’s 2 separate states of emergency would be lifted on May 11, 2023. He didn’t say anything at all about travel rules.

I repeat: that really has nothing to do with travel rules. Nothing. It’s that simple.

Travel requirements are something completely separate and distinct from the states of emergency. Just as they have been all along and as Flytrippers has told you for many many months.

So the end of the states of emergency, in and of itself, really doesn’t mean anything for travelers. The travel rules come from a presidential proclamation , not from the state of emergency.

But obviously, the end of the states of emergency is a good sign. It’s not guaranteed to end the travel rules, unfortunately. But it’s a good sign.

The new U.S. Senate vote on March 29

In the USA, both houses of Congress must vote to create legislation (the House of Representatives and the Senate).

Earlier this year, the House of Representatives voted to end the national emergency declaration (but NOT the public health emergency). And on March 29, in a bipartisan vote, the U.S. Senate also voted to end the national emergency declaration.

(This has nothing to do with the House vote to end the vaccination requirement , which still hasn’t been passed by the Senate!)

Biden was “strongly opposed” to this new bill but had confirmed he would not veto it.

The new law on April 10

Biden had 10 days (Sundays excluded) after the Senate vote to sign the bill into law. He took all the time he had and signed that into law today.

The national emergency declaration is no more. They didn’t change anything about the public health emergency, which is still in effect until May 11th, as announced in January.

Most importantly, they have still not mentioned anything about the entry requirements for travelers.

As much as the rules themselves are illogical (very), it’s actually a simple concept really: every rule is a separate rule. The vaccination requirement will end when the rule about the vaccination requirement will be lifted (and we’ll let you know of course).

Really, this all has nothing to do with the USA vaccination requirement at all for now, unfortunately.

Absolutely nothing has changed since November 8th, 2021 in terms of the USA vaccination requirement in fact.

The update on April 19 and April 27

Believe it or not… the USA has finally changed something about their vaccination requirement . It’s the very first change to the requirement since it was launched back in 2021. 

And the change is not to remove the requirement, or to stop accepting vaccines received over 2 years ago that scientifically have absolutely no effect anymore.

No, they have changed the definition of vaccinated to include 2 new 1-dose options.

The Janssen/Johnson & Johnson and CanSinoBIO vaccines were the only ones accepted if you had only received 1 dose. Since April 19, the new bivalent Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines are accepted even if you had just 1 dose. It really has to be the new vaccine though, not the old monovalent one from Pfizer or Moderna. 

On April 27, they tweaked it again to also accept all Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna as 1-dose vaccines IF they were received after August 16th, 2022.

Weird that they would change that if everything is going to end in less than 2 weeks (as it really should)… 

The rules after May 11

Obviously, as I said, the logic would be that if both states of emergency are eliminated (as they will be on May 11), the entry rules can also be eliminated. So the end of both states of emergency is a good sign. It’s still good news (or bad news if you thought they’d get over all this faster than in May).

By far the likeliest scenario is the USA vaccination requirement being eliminated on May 11th. It would be at the end of the day on the 11th, so the 12th actually (the public health emergency expires at the end of the day on the 11th).

We’re watching this for you; news should come at least a few days before ( sign up for our free newsletter for travelers to get all the updates).

Newsletter for travelers to get USA rules updates

But also… remember that President Biden said the pandemic was over… back in September 2022!

So actions are not always coherent and consistent, as has been the case since the beginning of the governmental response to the pandemic. Just like here in Canada, of course. So the May 11th date is not guaranteed.

I let you reread the section on the “logic” of this rule if you are one of those who blindly believe that governments are always right.

The “logic” behind this renewal

Or read how the vaccination requirement doesn’t apply if you fly to the Dominican Republic or the Bahamas and then enter the USA by ferry , which is quite the science. Good luck justifying the logic in that one.

The state of emergency in the USA

If you’re interested, I’ll explain the January 30th announcement and what the state of emergency is, or rather their 2 separate states of emergency.

As mentioned, in 2020, the United States declared:

It’s obviously outdated. But it’s still in place in 2023, for lots of political reasons.

The national state of emergency was set to expire on March 1 and the public health state of emergency was set to expire on April 11.

The President announced that he was extending both states of emergency until May 11… and that he would not renew them at that time.

(The word “emergency,” by definition, is not that compatible with predicting that it will be an “emergency” for another 4 months or predicting 4 months in advance that it won’t be an “emergency” in 4 months… but hey, that’s just politics like everything else in the COVID-19 rules for a while now!)

In short, it’s really mostly about their internal response to the pandemic.

The state of emergency is not directly related to the entry requirements for foreigners, which is a different presidential proclamation as I mentioned.

But we’ll obviously monitor that and let you know if the USA vaccination requirement is:

• Lifted on its current end date of May 11 at the same time as the public health emergency
• Extended even more (everything is possible in this hygiene theater)

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The United States has announced the end of its state of emergency. This has nothing to do with the USA vaccination requirement , so we shouldn’t be too quick to rejoice. We can’t assume that the entry rule will be eliminated as well, even though it is still very likely.

What would you like to know about the travel requirements in the USA? Tell us in the comments below.

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This post has 103 comments.

It seems that finally there is the green light for foreign travellers, can you confirm too?

Yes 🙂 https://flytrippers.com/usa-vaccination-requirement-travel/

and here we have it ….

https://www.dhs.gov/news/2023/05/01/dhs-statement-lifting-title-19-requirements

“Beginning May 12, 2023, DHS will no longer require non-U.S. travelers entering the United States via land ports of entry and ferry terminals to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and provide related proof of vaccination upon request. DHS intends to rescind these Title 19 travel restrictions in alignment with the end of the Public Health Emergency and the termination of the Presidential Proclamation on air travel.”

Yep, confirmed 🙂 Post is updated!

I am a bit confused, so beginning May 12 will the non US travelers be able to enter the country by air ( airport) or only by land ( land port) ? Thank you! You are doing a great communication work

Yes it’s over 🙂 https://flytrippers.com/usa-vaccination-requirement-travel/

It was truly my pleasure Maria! I’d love to keep helping you travel in the future as well! 🙂

You can thank us AND help yourself by using our links for you next travel credit card applications ( for Canadians and for Americans ). You’ll get a huge welcome bonus worth hundreds of dollars in free travel!

Also, you can support us by signing up for our free newsletter (you’ll get great content), subscribing to our YouTube channel , and following us on your favorite social media ( Facebook , Instagram , Twitter , Pinterest , TikTok ) and telling your friends about our website !

🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞 In plain English please,,, ( No longer need a vaccination to Enter?) this stupidity is finally over? We can all go see Mickey now ,

Do “land ports of entry” include also airports?

The rule for land entry has never been really explicitly updated at every renewal, it will be removed everywhere 🙂

I’m sorry Andrew for my previous comment. I haven’t red the last sentence of the news properly. It explains situation with regards to air travel 🙂

so this is the green light??!?! 12th of may? im sorry im shaking and crying.

Have just seen the news, vaccine mandate lifted from May 11th announced by the White House!! Am over the moon, thank you for the updates throughout Andrew; you kept my hope going!

Yep, the post was updated last night (refresh or Ctrl+F5 to clear cache).

It was truly my pleasure to help Will! I’d love to keep helping you travel in the future as well! 🙂

Hi Andrew, How to understand this fresh news? https://www.miragenews.com/why-us-still-require-covid-vaccines-for-996360/ Rather no place for a positive interpretation 🙁

Positive interpretation: they just aligned the vaccine requirement with the new CDC guidelines because they want to save face and at least pretend this is logical to end it on a good note.

The CDC specifically says this is for air travel only, so how does this affect land border crossings?

As the specifics of the land border rules were never easy to find, we can assume they remain identical to the rules by air.

Fingers crossed for us all like I have already said I have a holiday booked for 16th to Orlando , I have never checked online so much for updates …. Taking over my brain and at the same time burning it out , I read your posts everyday and sometimes I feel confident and then I read a negative one , really confused and don’t know how to think … but I am a positive person so shall try to stay that way ….. I have a week before I go to change my holiday which if need be would obviously be to another country , thank you for all your updates 🙌🏽🙌🏽 maybe you could let us know if you hear anything

At least according to that page: “… it will continue to require Covid-19 vaccinations for international travelers entering the United States via air travel, despite the expected end of the nation’s public health emergency on May 11, when most pandemic measures are anticipated to be lifted.” And the justification: “… is due to the ongoing risk the coronavirus poses to millions of Americans, particularly adults 65 and older and those with weakened immune systems.”

That was fake news, again 😛

Is this New???? So even after 11th May unvaccinated aren’t allowed to Enter even though the National Emergency will have ended????

No, nothing has changed in terms of the end date, nothing.

Thank you Andrew , I went into meltdown for a moment lol. I’m still preying for a change before Saturday as that’s my last possible day for amending our Holiday or losing it all together ☹️.

I would assume they would announce something this week! Let’s hope for it.

Loved the article, and now I’m only waiting for Biden to pronounce these words :” Air travelers are no more required to show a vaccine certification”

Hopefully very soon!

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-12034847/Biden-FINALLY-announces-COVID-vaccine-requirement-travelers-scrapped-11.html?ito=push-notification&ci=u077Uj_KEy&cri=jhIrH9l53O&si=qRAAknA6PVD5&xi=dd65fe8c-27aa-4478-a8ca-e6b7d26209f4&ai=12034847

it’s been lifted May 11!!!!!! please tell me I’m reading this correctly

It was truly my pleasure to help Kara! I’d love to keep helping you travel in the future as well! 🙂

Hi again, I see you say quite a few people have entered without being asked – did I get that correctly? Thank you.

Yes for sure.

Hi, Thank you for this article. I what form do the USA need the proof of vaccination? My daughter has a paper version (pdf or printed, not an App or phone version). Thank you.

Hi, Here’s what the USA officially requires in terms of proof (either of the 3 options works): -Vaccination certificate with QR code, digital pass via Smartphone application with QR code (e.g., United Kingdom National Health Service COVID Pass, European Union Digital COVID Certificate) -Printout of COVID-19 vaccination record or a COVID-19 vaccination certificate issued at national or subnational level or by an authorized vaccine provider (e.g., the CDC vaccination card) -Digital photos of vaccination card or record, downloaded vaccine record or vaccination certificate from official source (e.g., public health agency, government agency, or other authorized vaccine provider), or a mobile phone application without QR code

Hi Me again 🤦🏼‍♀️ I have managed to get an extension with regards to paying our Holiday balance before they cancel it completely ☹️, I only have until the 7th May to make a final balance payment on a large Family booking to Disney or we lose thousands of pounds!, one out of our 12 isn’t vaccinated, this is causing so much stress . As the payment needs to be made by Sun 7th May UK time, what is the likely hood of an announcement prior to this with regard to the proclamation being extended again? Or would they just say nothing then on the 8th say unvaccinated can travel by which time our Holiday would be ruined for the sake of 3 days! Thanks for any help

It’s safe to assume they would announce either the extension or the removal of the rule before May 7th. If they haven’t by May 7th, then before your deadline do the math on how much you lose if you risk it :S

so if it hasn’t passed the senate and isn’t likely to happen before may 11…why do you keep saying the requirement is ” likely” to end in May..

I’m stressing as I have a tripped planned very soon

I explain why here: https://flytrippers.com/usa-vaccination-requirement-travel/#End_date_for_the_USA_vaccination_requirement

Hi , I am too travelling to Orlando on 16th may from uk , family of 5 my son hasn’t received his 2nd vacianation so I understand your pressure , everyday I am checking for updates …. Arggghhhhh , I haven’t changed mine , I am quite hopefully after doing lots of research, but still not guaranteed, as a last resort I can change my hotel up till 5 days before we travel , so it would still be a loss as regards to flights , but kids are very excited so don’t want to cancel it all yet , very hard …. Good luck to you and your family

Is your son under 18? Vaccination requirement only applies to adults.

Hi there yes he is 21

Oh okay, that’s unfortunate 🙁 Let’s hope they stop this nonsense.

Thank you Gina , We can’t afford to miss that Deadline unfortunately as we will lose 30k , as we will be weeks away from travelling our only Alternative is to remove 4 members that are in one room and if the rule changes try to book them back in but then we lose the Disney Dining etc 🤦‍♀️, It’s very stressful and the Holiday Company aren’t really that helpful! So if we don’t know by the 7th we have to pull them out, Breaks my heart as we won’t get this chance again as a Family 😢. I really hope you are able to Travel and if so that you have a fabulous time, I think we all need it after the last few years tbh , 🤞 news is available soon as I can’t stand many more sleepless nights and worry.

Gina Have a wonderful holiday with your Family 😊, we will be heading there in July as a family of 12 soooooo Happy this has been resolved

Reading the news in Italy I was sure that from May 11 U.S. lifted all the restrictions for the unvaccinated foreign travelers, so much so that I was going to buy tickets for New York departing from Italy on May 12th. Luckily there are clear and competent articles like yours, I read this article a week ago and I understood that there is no certainty that from May 11 unvaccinated tourists will be able to travel to the U.S. Now I come to this page every day waiting for new updates (the update of April 19 did not seem comforting to me XD ). The idea of flying to New York on May 12 is still there, but I’ll wait for official news to proceed with the purchase of tickets and I hope they won’t let something know just a few days before.

Hopefully they’ll announce their intentions a bit earlier than during the last rule extensions!

Interesting past couple of days ….

Looks like the FDA updated the approved vaxx list. Looks like they unauthorized the monovalent Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines. FYI – A monovalent vaccine is a vaccine with one strain of a virus. A bivalent vaccine is a vaccine with two strains of a virus.

“Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration amended the emergency use authorizations (EUAs) of the Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 bivalent mRNA vaccines to simplify the vaccination schedule for most individuals. This action includes authorizing the current bivalent vaccines (original and omicron BA.4/BA.5 strains) to be used for all doses administered to individuals 6 months of age and older, including for an additional dose or doses for certain populations. The monovalent Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines are no longer authorized for use in the United States.”

https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-fda-authorizes-changes-simplify-use-bivalent-mrna-covid-19-vaccines

This lead to the CDC to update the vaxx requirements to ender the USA as per this Twitter post / comparison of March to April 2023 https://twitter.com/LionAdvocacy/status/1648875911012315136?s=20

Now the question is …. most would likely have the older monovalent proof of vaxx – say 2020/2021. Does this now mean most vaxx’ers will NOT be not be allowed into the US as they don’t have the bivalent vaxx? Could this updated CDC list now hinder even those vaxx travelers who “think” they’re up to date?

Also news to me was both Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 bivalent mRNA vaccines are single doses now vs. the double in the past (as per the CDC chart)

No, they didn’t removed any vaccines from the list of those accepted, they just added new 1-dose options (the bivalent Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna). Wrote this up quickly: https://flytrippers.com/usa-state-of-emergency-pandemic/#The_update_on_April_19

The FDA actually did remove the monovalent Moderna & Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines from their authorized list for use in the United States – replaced with the newer bivalents. However, since the CDC is still aligning with the “Vaccines Listed for Emergency Use (EUL) by the World Health Organization” it’s sorta a mute point.

However, it would be interesting if the US decided not to include the WHO’s list in the future??

Seems unlikely, but who knows!

I’m just out of the San Juan ferry terminal. I can confirm I boarded the magical Covid puryfing ferry from Santo Domingo and no questions asked there nor here about vax status. The only downside its that it is a 15+ hours trip so you have to plan accordingly.

Quite the science, right🤡! I’m glad the USA didn’t just let you fly in directly, that would’ve been very dangerous for their citizens😂! Thanks for the testimonial. Enjoy the USA 🙂

Crazy! I love science! Lol

Were you then able to fly out from San Juan to the mainland US without any issues? Nobody asked questions?

There is zero doubt about this. The USA has NEVER had any requirement for domestic flights, it’s that simple. No one will ever ask you anything for a domestic flight, same as since the beginning of the pandemic 🙂

No issues at all. Once you are in you can move freely.

Hello, I do not understand very well. I know there is the loophole from the Bahamas to Florida with the Ferry but is this another loophole to get into the US without vaccine? If I come from Europe, where should I fly to get to San Juan? And how long from San Juan to the US with the Ferry? Where do you arrive in the US? Thank you.

Hi, this post explains everything about the 2 ferries that enter the USA and that do not require vaccination: https://flytrippers.com/how-to-enter-usa-without-vaccination/

Got a holiday booked to Miami on 4th June from U.K, really holding out that the rules change on May 11th! Thanks so much for keeping us up to date, this is the only page I’ve found that gives up-to-date clear information.

Hi, My pleasure. Thank you for following us! Hoping it will be removed on the 11th so you can enjoy Miami, I’ve been 30 times and love it. Especially during the pandemic when they have been over all this nonsense for a long time haha.

I know the feeling! I’m from Australia and have a trip booked to Disneyland for 7th June, so I’m keeping hope that it will be dropped next month too!

Aaah!! Merci pour les informations claires et cette explication détaillée! J’étais confuse après la lecture de différents articles sur le sujet… Malheureusement, malgré la qualité de votre article, je ne me sens pas en joie…😉

Ça fait plaisir. En passant, tous nos articles sont disponibles en français si tu préfères, l’option de la langue est toujours dans le menu 🙂

oh wow, im bilingual… mais je suis d’avis avec Ecoline Jolie… MERCI d’exister Andrew. Malgre les desagrements, vos articles sont coherents… objectifs… c’est rassurant d’avoir de l’information afin de se preparer a toutes eventualites. Encore merci et restons a l’affut! Bonne semaine a tous!

Merci à toi de nous suivre 🙂

I am so VERY thankful for your informed, rational articles. Thanks for all your hard work! (When will this madness end? Argh!)

Thank you for following us! Hopefully very soon!

Thank you for your updates! I also keep tracking this congress website: https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/185 . Is this bill related to that emergency amendment issued by TSA?

If so, I am more concerned after checking its progress, because it hasn’t even been passed in senate… I cannot imagine vax requirement needs to be extended again if biden does not sign it by May 11.

Hi, yes that is the one that would end the vaccine requirement itself. It would have to be passed by the Senate, then it could take up to 10 days (Sundays excluded) to be enacted, assuming Biden doesn’t veto it (he didn’t veto the end of the national emergency declaration for what it’s worth).

im so happy i found this site. im from Holland and have a voucher for a USA holiday, cancelled because of Covid. Its difficult to exactly understand everything around Covid in Amerika, we have zero rules.. Hope to visit 17th of May but waiting for green light to make a real booking. Thank you.

Hi, it’s simple really: according to the current rules, non-citizen adults can’t enter except through ferries from the Dominican Republic and the Bahamas. Until at least May 11th, end of day. What is a bit complicated is that the rules aren’t always enforced. But hopefully starting May 12th everyone will be able to enter and you can visit 🙂

Hi all I am also due to fly with my family to Orlando may 16th my son who is 21 has not had his 2nd dose , in uk now all the covid vaccine centres have shut down and most doctors are only now supplying the booster so it’s all messed up for us , I am hoping and praying it is lifted on the 11th , just out of interest what are peoples views as to wether it will be lifted on this date , ? Just need a little hope please I have twin daughters very excited about Disney

I think it’s likely to end, but it’s not guaranteed unfortunately. That said, your change/cancelation policy for your travel expenses may be worth checking into in case. Depending on your personal tolerance for risk.

Technically the land borders should be re-opening now. The law behind them states that Biden can do almost anything he wants with an order like this, BUT, he tasked the DHS (Department of Homeland Security) to carry out the order. The DHS legally can carry out an order like this only during a National Emergency, which as you stated has ended now. So Biden can keep it legally but task another department to carry it out – which he won’t do – so it should end. The DHS isn’t responding to requests on this (likely waiting for Biden to tell them what to do) which means the land border rule isn’t legal anymore. But since when have politicians cared about the law during covid? They break it and wait for judges to force them to stop.

Yeah, might be the case. But as of now, the government is saying that the vaccine mandate rules are still in effect by air and by land/sea. If someone were to contest it, it would probably take weeks for that to get anywhere, unfortunately.

There is a lawsuit against Biden (White House) going on right now from an individual in Tennessee. They are asking for an injunction and from what I’m hearing there’s a 50/50 chance that could happen. For those not familiar with US law an injunction is a temporary halt of the law, in this case the vaccine mandate. So if that is successful then it will be all over and we should know within 3 weeks.

I don’t agree with you, I think the mandate’s gone with today’s bill from Biden. All rules have been introduced because of the national emergency: every extension started with the title “EMERGENCY AMENDMENT”. There’s no more emergency because of this bill signed by the president, so it’s basically dead.

There is still a public health emergency, which may be why they are able to keep the vaccine mandate.

Hi – Just wanted to say they are still asking at the land border crossing today! Maybe it will take a few days for them to be told to stop but border guards are still asking as of 2pm April 11th.

They won’t stop asking until the requirement is lifted, which will sadly not be in just a few days, barring a sudden change.

Which land border did you get asked at ?

I’ve been following your posts for information on the requirements. I note your article says that the end of the covid emergency has nothing to do with the travel rules. I believe this is true only for air travel. As you may know, travel by land and ferry is not covered by the Proclamation and is in fact linked to the end of the covid emergency. Technically, the Proclamation only covers air travel, and not travel by land or ferry. That requirement is laid out by the Department of Homeland Security, and they used the covid emergency to instate those travel restrictions. So technically with the end of the covid emergency, the restrictions by land and ferry should terminate immediately, but as you have said before, nothing with this Administration makes any sense.

This article super helpful: https://brownstone.org/articles/visit-the-us-by-sea-or-land-if-not-by-air/

My understanding is that the vaccine rule can still be enforced since the public health emergency is still in effect. At least that’s what their government is saying, so if someone were to contest it, it would probably take weeks for that to get anywhere, unfortunately.

Looks like they’ve moved the April 11th to May 11th now https://www.tsa.gov/sites/default/files/ea-1546-21-02c.pdf

Yes, here are the details: https://flytrippers.com/usa-vaccination-requirement-travel/

Thank you for continuing to provide updates and insights on this issue. I’m checking regularly for an update having seen news that Novak Djokovic will be attending the US Open this year.

Hopefully an update will come soon giving the close proximity to May 11th.

I *really* appreciate all your clear, succinct updates. Praying that this insanity will end soon, and won’t be surprised if it doesn’t.

My pleasure, being a traveler and being open-minded and exploring other countries to broaden my horizons and learn about other people’s points of view has logically always made me against discrimination in all its forms. Just being coherent really.

what are the chances of driving overand flying from Bangor?

Hard to evaluate chances. I would say almost all the many testimonials we received said the customs agents didn’t ask for PROOF (of course if they ask your vaccination status and you say you are not vaccinated, all customs agents will deny entry). Many agents didn’t ask anything at all (but some ask for vaccination status without asking for proof). So it’s definitely not 100%. Not sure if it’s different in different US states. I know you guys in the Atlantic region were veryyyy scared of COVID-19, so I don’t know if that would mean the customs agents in Maine would be more likely to ask or less likely.

Thanks for the update. As we are thinking of a Vancouver cruise departure in may, are you aware of the prescreening at US border control at Canada place? Are they turning away unvaccinated Canadians? Thanks

I would assume so, but maybe the cruise line can tell you more specifically.

Thanks will do.

I would like to know when travel restrictions will be lifted

Don’t we all? Our guide on the rules to enter the USA will be updated as soon as we know something. You can also sign up for our free newsletter to get all the updates in your inbox too 🙂

Maybe restrictions will end a bit sooner than expected? Biden said he won’t veto the bill to end the Covid Emergency restrictions early….I guess the question is how soon after will the border open to the pure bloods. https://www.axios.com/2023/03/29/congress-end-covid-emergency-early

Maybe, we’ll let you know as soon as there’s any indication for sure.

I suspected as much, but so appreciate this explanation of what may or may not happen. Your site is invaluable for many things – thank you.

Thank you for following us 🙂

Thomas Massie @RepThomasMassie · 17h Thank you @USTravel for vocally supporting H.R. 185 to remove the COVID vaccine requirement for international visitors flying to the United States. This bill will reunite families and promote commerce. Congress votes on H.R. 185 next week!

will you update us if this happens even b4 April 10th. I’m praying I can travel to the US with my 11 year old daughters team.

Hi, yes for sure we’ll write about any change! You can sign up for our free newsletter and join 95,000+ Canadian travelers who get all the travel updates (and travel tips and deals) in their inbox directly.

I’ve seen that April 10th has been extended til May 11th (transportation security administration) the emergency amendment. Have you seen this yet and does that mean still unable to cross?

Yes, it has been extended, here are the details: https://flytrippers.com/usa-vaccination-requirement-travel/ But to be clear, no, it does not mean you’re “unable” to cross, many have been doing for a long time since it’s not often enforced. And you are able to enter while following the rules, if you do it by sea from countries other than Canada and Mexico.

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Press Conference: Monetary Policy Report – April 2024

Available as: Audio , Audio (with interpretation)

Release of the Monetary Policy Report  – Press conference by Governor Tiff Macklem and Carolyn Rogers, Senior Deputy Governor (10:30 (ET) approx.).

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Solar eclipse

• 2024 solar eclipse guide: What to know
• Forecast and path
• Where to buy eclipse glasses
• How to watch safely
• Eclipse travel

April Total Solar Eclipse: Weather Forecast and Facts for the Big Day

(WVNS) — The April 8th, 2024 Total Solar Eclipse has been on the minds of many since the last total solar eclipse to cross the U.S. in 2017. The annular solar eclipse in August 2023 spurred excitement for this Monday’s eclipse too.

With so many eclipses in just the last 10 years, what makes the Total Solar Eclipse on April, 8th so special? It’ll be the the last one in the lower 48 states until 2044 and even then, it’ll only be Eastern Montana that sees it right before sunset August 23rd, 2044.

59News Total Eclipse Live Stream

StormTracker 59 Meteorologist Bradley Wells will be on location in the path of totality with a live stream from Lewis County, New York. Available for free on our social pages , website, and app . Beginning at 2:30pm, we’ll live stream the event through totality for all to enjoy. Totality is expected at 3:26pm in New York.

Total Solar Eclipse Facts

The April 2024 Eclipse will travel from Texas through Maine during the middle of the afternoon providing millions with a great opportunity to see a celestial event some call enlightening. According to the Great American Eclipse website, over 31 million Americans live in the path of totality. NASA maps of the 2024 eclipse show the entire United States will see a partial solar eclipse on Monday.

While the sun is 400 times larger than the moon, it is 400 times farther away from the earth. When the moon moves in front of the sun, it casts a narrow shadow on the Earth’s surface. To truly experience a solar eclipse, a trip to totality, or this narrow shadow, is needed. During totality the moon completely blocks the sun allowing for the normally hidden sun’s corona to shine brightly against a darkened sky.

During a total solar eclipse, while in the path of totality, several stages happen leading up to totality. Totality is the 1-4 minutes where the moon completely blocks the sun before moving on.

First Contact

When the moon first touches the sun, it’s called first contact. From here the moon continues to move across the sun in a partial eclipse. Specialized eclipse glasses are required to view safely.

Shadow Bands

Leading up to and shortly after totality, when the moon covers the entire surface of the sun, long, wavy, fast moving dark bands separated by white spaces can be seen on the ground and buildings. While faint and difficult to photograph, these are caused by sun rays passing through mountains and valleys on the moon then distorted by our atmosphere. Similar to how starlight is affected by the air around our planet. Using a large white piece of paper or poster paper will highlight this phenomenon.

Diamond Ring

Moments before the moon completely covers the sun, a sliver of sunlight beams brightly at the top of an eclipsed ring below. Even with 1% of the sunlight coming through, eclipse glasses will still be needed.

Since the moon and sun aren’t perfect spheres, sunlight finds it’s way through valleys and craters along the moons edge. These are very short lived and aren’t always noticeable during an eclipse but the glittering effect can be fun to watch for. The main event of a total solar eclipse, is the 1-4 minutes the moon completely covers the sun, or second contact. At this point, eclipse glasses can be taken off to view the stunning darkened sun with its corona reaching out from behind the moon. BE VIGILANT , eclipse glasses will be needed once the moon begins to move away. The length of totality depends on where are you are lasting a little as just a minute or two up to 4 minutes. During totality, a pink hue may be seen hugging the lunar surface known as the chromosphere or inner atmosphere of the sun. The corona, or outer atmosphere, can be visible streaming out into space. Normally both a blocked by the blinding light we see during the day. Those in totality will see a 360 “sunset” sky. Normally when the sun set, the sky is brightly colored in the west while darker towards the east as night falls. In totality, the shadow cast by the moon keep the entire horizon evenly lit, in sunset color, in all directions.

Travel to Totality Forecast

For those traveling to totality, cloud forecasts will be very important since a nice, clear sunny day is best for the short lived 2-4 minutes the moon completely blocks the sun. Our StormTracker 59 team has just the forecast for folks looking to head out.

What We’ll See

Sadly, our region is several hundred miles away from the path of totality but we’ll still know the eclipse is happening. A partial solar eclipse can be just a fun to watch but will require special eye protection by using solar eclipse glasses or welders glass rated above shade #14. In most counties, we’ll see a 80-90% eclipsed sun, as long as the clouds hold off.

On Monday, April 8th for our region, the eclipse will begin at 1:56pm with the moon moving across the sun. At first not much difference in sunlight and those wishing to see the eclipse will need special glasses. Do not look directly at the sun, permanent damage to your eyes can happen in less than a minute. The height of the eclipse, when the sun is 89% eclipsed will occur at 3:13pm. The moon will continue to move across the sun until 4:27pm. While we won’t see total eclipse, the skies will darken and colors will be muted like taking away contrast on a camera filter.

NASA has put together an amazing tool for those traveling to totality or staying home for the eclipse. An interactive map can show you exactly what you’ll see and when from town to town.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WVNS.

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When will solar eclipse reach your town? These maps show path's timing, how long it lasts.

Hundreds of cities in 13 u.s. states fall directly on the april 8 eclipse's path of totality as the moon blocks the sun's disc and ushers in darkness. these interactive maps offer a closer look..

Come Monday, millions of Americans from Texas to Maine will stop what they're doing to step outside and spend a few minutes gazing skyward .

Few celestial events have the power to capture our collective attention the way this upcoming total solar eclipse has managed to do. And for those making time to witness it, two questions are bound to be on their mind : Will totality reach my area and if so, how long will the resulting darkness last?

Most people across the country are bound to experience the eclipse in some form, but only 13 states fall directly on the path of totality, where the moon will appear large enough to shield all but the sun's outermost layer, the corona.

As you make your eclipse-viewing plans, these interactive maps should help you chart the time and duration for when totality will occur in cities along the path.

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Total solar eclipse path of totality map

The 115-mile-wide path of totality will pass from southwest to northeast over portions of Mexico the United States and Canada.

Mexico's Pacific coast will be the first location in continental North America to experience totality, which will occur at about 11:07 a.m. PDT,  according to NASA .

As the moon's shadow travels northeast, totality in the U.S. will begin at 1:27 p.m. CDT in Eagle Pass, Texas. From there, the path will cut diagonally across the country before ending around 3:35 p.m. EDT in Lee, Maine.

Remember: If you plan to witness the eclipse, proper eyewear is a must until the eclipse reaches totality, then it can be viewed with the naked eye.

Here's a map of some of the larger cities in each of the 13 states on the path to show how the duration of totality will vary:

Cities, states on the path of totality

All told, nearly 500 cities in 13 U.S. states are located on the eclipse's path of totality. Here are some of the major cities in each of the 13 states:

• Dallas and San Antonio, Texas
• Idabel, Oklahoma
• Poplar Bluff, Missouri
• Little Rock, Arkansas
• Paducah, Kentucky
• Indianapolis and Evansville, Indiana
• Carbondale, Illinois
• Cleveland and Toledo, Ohio
• Buffalo, Rochester and Syracuse, New York
• Burlington, Vermont
• Lancaster, New Hampshire
• Caribou, Maine
• Erie, Pennsylvania

This interactive map provides a closer look at cities along the path, when totality will arrive there and how long totality will last:

Eclipse watch parties, festivals

Such a rare event is sure to attract skygazing tourists unlucky enough to live outside the path of totality. Fortunately, many cities that will experience the total eclipse are planning plenty of festivities for tourists and locals alike.

This map , courtesy of Kristian Campana at festivalguidesandreviews.com , includes locations of watch parties, music festivals and more all tied to the eclipse's arrival:

2024 total solar eclipse interactive map with zip code search

Perhaps the easiest way to see how the eclipse will impact your city or town, is to put your zip code into USA TODAY's interactive eclipse map .

Eric Lagatta covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected]

Strong Taiwan Quake Kills 9, Injures Hundreds

The earthquake was the most powerful to hit the island in 25 years. Dozens of people remained trapped, and many buildings were damaged, with the worst centered in the city of Hualien.

• Share full article

• Hualien, Taiwan A landslide after the quake. Lam Yik Fei for The New York Times
• New Taipei City, Taiwan Books flew off shelves as a home shook. @Abalamindo via Storyful
• Taipei, Taiwan Passengers waiting at a train station as some services were suspended. Chiang Ying-Ying/Associated Press
• Hualien, Taiwan People are rescued from a building that had partially collapsed. TVBS via Associated Press
• Hualien, Taiwan Firefighters rescuing trapped residents from a building. CTI News via Reuters
• Taipei, Taiwan Students evacuated to a school courtyard after the earthquake. Lam Yik Fei for The New York Times
• Guishan Island, Taiwan Rocks tumbling down one side of an island popular for hiking. Lavine Lin via Reuters
• Hualien, Taiwan A building leaned to one side after the quake. Randy Yang via Associated Press
• Ishigaki, Okinawa, Japan Watching news on a rooftop of a hotel after a tsunami warning. Chang W. Lee/The New York Times
• Hualien, Taiwan Motorbikes damaged in the quake. TVBS via Associated Press
• New Taipei City, Taiwan Damage in an apartment Fabian Hamacher/Reuters
• New Taipei City, Taiwan Water cascading down a building during the quake. Wang via Reuters

Meaghan Tobin and Victoria Kim

Here’s what you need to know about the earthquake.

Taiwan was rocked Wednesday morning by the island’s strongest earthquake in a quarter century, a magnitude 7.4 tremor that killed at least nine people, injured more than 800 others and trapped dozens of people.

The heaviest damage was in Hualien County on the island’s east coast, a sleepy, scenic area prone to earthquakes. Footage from the aftermath showed a 10-story building there partially collapsed and leaning heavily to one side, from which residents emerged through windows and climbed down ladders, assisted by rescuers. Three hikers were killed after being hit by falling rocks on a hiking trail in Taroko National Park, according to the county government.

By late afternoon, officials said rescue efforts were underway to try to rescue 127 people who were trapped, many of them on hiking trails in Hualien.

One building in Changhua County, on the island’s west coast, collapsed entirely. The quake was felt throughout Taiwan and set off at least nine landslides, sending rocks tumbling onto Suhua Highway in Hualien, according to local media reports. Rail services were halted at one point across the island.

The earthquake, with an epicenter off Taiwan’s east coast, struck during the morning commute, shortly before 8 a.m. Taiwanese authorities said by 3 p.m., more than 100 aftershocks, many of them stronger than magnitude 5, had rumbled through the area.

In the capital, Taipei, buildings shook for over a minute from the initial quake. Taiwan is at the intersection of the Philippine Sea tectonic plate and the Eurasian plate, making it vulnerable to seismic activity. Hualien sits on multiple active faults, and 17 people died in a quake there in 2018.

Here is the latest:

The earthquake hit Taiwan as many people there were preparing to travel for Tomb Sweeping Day, a holiday across the Chinese-speaking world when people mourn the dead and make offerings at their graves. Officials warned the public to stay away from visiting tombs in mountain areas as a precaution, especially because rain was forecast in the coming days.

TSMC, the world’s biggest maker of advanced semiconductors, briefly evacuated workers from its factories but said a few hours later that they were returning to work. Chip production is highly precise, and even short shutdowns can cost millions of dollars.

Christopher Buckley

Lai Ching-te, Taiwan’s vice president, who is also its president-elect, visited the city of Hualien this afternoon to assess the destruction and the rescue efforts, a government announcement said. Mr. Lai, who will become president in May, said the most urgent tasks were rescuing trapped residents and providing medical care. Next, Mr. Lai said, public services must be restored, including transportation, water and power. He said Taiwan Railway’s eastern line could be reopened by Thursday night.

Meaghan Tobin

Taiwan’s fire department has updated its figures, reporting that nine people have died and 934 others have been injured in the quake. Fifty-six people in Hualien County remain trapped.

Shake intensity

Taiwan’s fire department reports that nine people have died and 882 others have been injured in Taiwan. In Hualien County, 131 people remain trapped.

Agnes Chang

Footage shows rocks tumbling down one side of Guishan Island, a popular spot for hiking known as Turtle Island, off the northeast coast of Taiwan. Officials said no fishermen or tourists were injured after the landslide.

The death toll has risen to nine, according to Taiwan government statistics.

Meaghan Tobin, Siyi Zhao

Officials in Taiwan warned residents to not visit their relatives' tombs, especially in the mountains, this weekend during the holiday, known as Ching Ming, meant to honor them. There had already been 100 aftershocks and the forecast called for rain, which could make travel conditions on damaged roads more treacherous.

Crews are working to reach people trapped on blocked roads. As of 1 p.m. local time, roads were impassable due to damage and fallen rock in 19 places, according to the Ministry of Transportation. At least 77 people remain trapped. A bridge before Daqingshui Tunnel appeared to have completely collapsed.

Taiwan’s worst rail disaster in decades — a train derailment in 2021 that killed 49 people — took place on the first day of the Tomb Sweeping holiday period that year, in the same region as the earthquake.

The earthquake hit Taiwan as many people here were preparing to travel for Tomb Sweeping Day, or Ching Ming, a day across the Chinese-speaking world when people mourn their dead, especially by making offerings at their graves. Now those plans will be disrupted for many Taiwanese.

The holiday weekend would typically see a spike in travel as people visit family across Taiwan. Currently, both rail transport and highways are blocked in parts of Hualien, said Transport Minister Wang Guo-cai. Work is underway to restore rail transportation in Hualien, and two-way traffic is expected to be restored at noon on Thursday, he said.

Taiwan’s preparedness has evolved in response to past quakes.

Taiwan’s earthquake preparedness has evolved over the past few decades in response to some of the island’s largest and most destructive quakes .

In the years after a 7.6 magnitude earthquake in central Taiwan killed nearly 2,500 people in 1999, the authorities established an urban search-and-rescue team and opened several emergency medical operation centers, among other measures .

And in 2018, after a quake in the eastern coastal city of Hualien killed 17 people and caused several buildings to partially collapse, the government ordered a wave of building inspections .

Taiwan has also been improving its early warning system for earthquakes since the 1980s. And two years ago, it rolled out new building codes that, among other things, require owners of vulnerable buildings to install ad-hoc structural reinforcements.

So how well prepared was Taiwan when a 7.4 magnitude quake struck near Hualien on Wednesday morning, killing at least seven people and injuring hundreds more?

Across the island, one building collapsed entirely, 15 others were in a state of partial collapse and another 67 were damaged, the island’s fire department said on Wednesday afternoon . Structural engineers could not immediately be reached for comment to assess that damage, or the extent to which building codes and other regulations might have either contributed to it or prevented worse destruction.

As for search-and-rescue preparedness, Taiwan is generally in very good shape, said Steve Glassey, an expert in disaster response who lives in New Zealand.

“ The skill sets, the capabilities, the equipment, the training is second to none,” said Dr. Glassey, who worked with Taipei’s urban search-and-rescue team during the response to a devastating 2011 earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand. “They’re a very sharp operation.”

But even the best urban search-and-rescue team will be stretched thin if an earthquake causes multiple buildings to collapse, Dr. Glassey said.

Taiwan has options for requesting international help with search-and-rescue efforts. It could directly ask another country, or countries, to send personnel. And if multiple teams were to get involved, it could ask the United Nations to help coordinate them, as it did after the 1999 earthquake.

Pierre Peron, a spokesman for the United Nations, said on Wednesday afternoon that no such request had yet been made as a result of the latest earthquake.

Meaghan Tobin contributed reporting.

At least seven people have died and 736 have been injured as a result of the earthquake, according to Taiwan’s fire department. Another 77 people remained trapped in Hualien County, many of them on hiking trails. Search and rescue operations are underway, said the fire department.

Aftershocks of magnitudes between 6.5 and 7 were likely to occur over the next three or four days, said Wu Chien-fu, director of the Taiwanese Central Weather Administration’s Seismology Center, at a news conference.

As of 2 p.m., 711 people had been injured across Taiwan, the fire department said, and 77 people in Hualien County remained trapped. The four who were known to have died were in Hualien.

Victoria Kim

Hualien County is a quiet and scenic tourist destination.

Hualien County on Taiwan’s east coast is a scenic, sleepy tourist area tucked away from the island’s urban centers, with a famous gorge and aquamarine waters. It also happens to sit on several active faults , making it prone to earthquakes.

The county has a population of about 300,000, according to the 2020 census, about a third of whom live in the coastal city of Hualien, the county seat. It is one of the most sparsely populated parts of Taiwan. About three hours by train from the capital, Taipei, the city describes itself as the first place on the island that’s touched by the sun.

Hualien County is home to Taroko National Park, one of Taiwan’s most popular scenic areas. Visitors come to explore the Taroko Gorge, a striated marble canyon carved by the Liwu River, which cuts through mountains that rise steeply from the coast. The city of Hualien is a popular destination as a gateway to the national park.

According to the state-owned Central News Agency, three hikers were trapped on a trail near the entrance to the gorge on Wednesday, after the quake sent rocks falling. Two of them were found dead, the news agency said. Administrators said many roads within the park had been cut off by the earthquake, potentially trapping hikers, according to the report.

Earthquakes have rattled Hualien with some regularity. In 2018, 17 people were killed and hundreds of others injured when a magnitude 6.5 quake struck just before midnight, its epicenter a short distance northeast of the city of Hualien.

Many of the victims in that quake were in a 12-story building that was severely tilted, the first four floors of which were largely crushed, according to news reports from the time. The next year, the area was shaken by a 6.1-magnitude earthquake that injured 17 people.

The area has some of the highest concentrations of Taiwan’s aboriginal population, with several of the island’s Indigenous tribes calling the county home .

The county government in Hualien released a list of people that had been hospitalized with injuries, which stood at 118 people as of midday Wednesday.

Across Taiwan, one building fell down entirely, in Changhua County on the west coast, and 15 buildings partially collapsed, Taiwan’s fire department said. Another 67 buildings were damaged. One of the partially collapsed structures was a warehouse in New Taipei City where four people were rescued, according to Taiwan’s Central News Agency. Another 12 were rescued at a separate New Taipei City building where the foundation sank into the ground.

Peggy Jiang, who manages The Good Kid, a children’s bookstore down the street from the partially collapsed Uranus Building in Hualien, said it was a good thing they had yet to open when the quake struck. The area is now blocked off by police and rescue vehicles. “Most people in Hualien are used to earthquakes,” she said. “But this one was particularly scary, many people ran in the street immediately afterward.”

Lin Jung, 36, who manages a shop selling sneakers in Hualien, said he had been at home getting ready to take his 16-month-old baby to a medical appointment when the earthquake struck. He said it felt at first like a series of small shocks, then “suddenly it turned to an intense earthquake shaking up and down.” The glass cover of a ceiling lamp fell and shattered. “All I could do was protect my baby.”

Chris Buckley ,  Paul Mozur ,  Meaghan Tobin and John Yoon

The earthquake damaged buildings and a highway in Hualien.

The magnitude 7.4 earthquake that struck Taiwan on Wednesday damaged many buildings and a major highway in Hualien, a city on the eastern coast, and it knocked out power as it rocked the island.

Across Taiwan, the quake and its aftershocks caused one building to completely collapse and 15 others to partially collapse, according to Taiwan’s fire department. Sixty-seven other buildings sustained damage.

Two tall buildings in Hualien that sustained particularly extensive damage were at the center of the rescue efforts there. Most damage across the city was not life-threatening, said Huang Hsuan-wan, a reporter for a local news site.

Where buildings were reported damaged in Hualien City

“A lot of roads were blocked off. There are a lot of walls toppled over onto cars,” Derik du Plessis, 44, a South African resident of Hualien, said shortly after the earthquake. He described people rushing around the city to check on their houses and pick up their children. One of his friends lost her house, he said.

One of the damaged buildings in Hualien, a 10-story structure called the Uranus Building that housed a mix of homes and shops, was tilted over and appeared to be on the verge of collapse. Many of its residents managed to flee, but some were missing, said Sunny Wang, a journalist based in the city. Rescuers were trying to reach the basement, concerned that people might be trapped there.

Photographs of the initial damage in Hualien showed another building, a five-story structure, leaning to one side, with crushed motorcycles visible at the ground-floor level. Bricks had fallen off another high-rise, leaving cracks and holes in the walls.

The quake also set off at least nine landslides on Suhua Highway in Hualien, according to Taiwan’s Central News Agency, which said part of the road had collapsed.

Taiwan’s fire department said four people had been killed in the earthquake.

Across Taiwan, 40 flights have been canceled or delayed because of the earthquake, according to Taiwan’s Central Emergency Operation Center.

President Tsai Ing-wen visited Taiwan’s national emergency response center this morning, where she was briefed about the response efforts underway by members of the ministries of defense, transportation, economic affairs and agriculture, as well as the fire department.

A look at Taiwan’s strongest earthquakes.

The magnitude 7.4 earthquake that hit Taiwan on Wednesday morning was the strongest in 25 years, the island’s Central Weather Administration said.

At least four people died after the quake struck off Taiwan’s east coast, officials said.

Here’s a look back at some of the major earthquakes in modern Taiwanese history:

Taichung, 1935

Taiwan’s deadliest quake registered a magnitude of 7.1 and struck near the island’s west coast in April 1935, killing more than 3,200 people, according to the Central Weather Administration. More than 12,000 others were injured and more than 50,000 homes were destroyed or damaged.

Tainan, 1941

A magnitude 7.3 earthquake in December 1941, which struck southwestern Taiwan, caused several hundred deaths, the United States Geological Survey said.

Chi-Chi, 1999

A 7.6 magnitude earthquake in central Taiwan killed nearly 2,500 people in September 1999. The quake, which struck about 90 miles south-southwest of Taipei, was the second-deadliest in the island’s history, according to the U.S.G.S. and the Central Weather Administration. More than 10,000 people were injured and more than 100,000 homes were destroyed or damaged.

Yujing, 2016

A 6.4 magnitude earthquake in February 2016 caused a 17-story apartment complex in southwestern Taiwan to collapse, killing at least 114 people . The U.S.G.S. later said that 90 earthquakes of that scale or greater had occurred within 250 kilometers, or 155 miles, of that quake’s location over the previous 100 years.

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