What to consider when travelling EUROPE – new regulations from 13th of May 2021 getting into force
Today, the news channel N-TV published the following article, which might be of some interest for expats, living in or travelling to Germany.
The following information mainly addresses to persons who are not travelling due to business, but more private. Business trips from outside Schengen Area to Germany are subject to some different rules, as the traveller has to proof the reason for the business trip for example.
Travelling in Europe is getting easier - even for the unvaccinated. As of today, a regulation comes into force thanks to which many holidaymakers can save themselves the subsequent quarantine. Corona rules are also being increasingly relaxed at home. The SPD health expert Lauterbach is already looking beyond the summer with a warning.
From this Thursday onwards, uniform Corona rules will apply nationwide for holiday returnees and other people entering Germany. For those who have been fully vaccinated and those who have recovered, regulations on quarantine and testing requirements will no longer apply - unless one comes from an area with new, more infectious virus variants. According to a decree passed by the cabinet, non-vaccinated persons coming from a "risk area" with a seven-day incidence of more than 50 can avoid the previously usual quarantine of ten days after entry. To do so, they must prove that they have recently tested negative. An antigen test that is not older than 48 hours - or a PCR test that is not older than 72 hours - is sufficient. It should be possible to upload the proof in the digital entry application.
The regulation is also intended to facilitate summer travel in Europe, for example when vaccinated parents travel together with non-vaccinated children. How travel countries are classified for German holidaymakers can be seen on the website of the Robert Koch Institute (RKI). The central factor for classification as a "risk area" is more than 50 reported new infections per 100,000 inhabitants within seven days. In addition, there are "high incidence areas" from the threshold of 200 as well as "virus variant areas" with new mutations.
When returning from high-incidence areas, the quarantine can be shortened by a negative test after five days at the earliest. Returners from virus-variant areas must continue to go into domestic quarantine for 14 days, which cannot be shortened by testing.
Source: www.n-tv.de 13.05.2021 - https://www.n-tv.de/politik/Bundesweite-Einreiseregeln-treten-in-Kraft-article22551936.html