First Day of Expanded COVID-19 'Special Entry Procedures'... Busy Airport

From Report Submission → Fever Screening → Self-Diagnosis App Installation → Issuance of Quarantine Confirmation Certificate

On the 19th, to prevent the influx of COVID-19, the government decided to apply 'special entry procedures' to all overseas arrivals regardless of their departure location. Passengers arriving on a flight from London, UK, are seen exiting the gate at Terminal 1 of Incheon International Airport. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Incheon International Airport=Reporter Yoo Je-hoon] "Starting today, special entry procedures will be implemented for all arrivals. Please make sure to fill out both the white paper (special quarantine declaration form) and the yellow paper (health status questionnaire) completely, including your flight number."

At around 9 a.m. on the 19th, in front of Gate 257 at Incheon International Airport Terminal 2 in Jung-gu, Incheon, passengers who appeared visibly tired from the early morning flight began to emerge one by one as Garuda Indonesia flight 870 from Denpasar (Bali) arrived.

Most passengers, wearing masks and some heavily equipped almost like gas masks, were busy filling out the health status questionnaire and special quarantine declaration form before undergoing immigration inspection. Quarantine officials were also running around assisting passengers who were confused by the newly implemented special entry procedures.

The government applied the 'special entry procedures' to all arrivals starting from midnight that day. This was due to the increasing cases of reverse inflow caused by the global spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19). Although some confusion was expected as the scope was expanded worldwide, no significant disruptions occurred since the system had already been applied to arrivals from China at the early stage of the outbreak.

At the western quarantine station of Terminal 2 at Incheon Airport visited that day, a space was set up for the special entry procedures. Passengers who completed the special quarantine declaration form and health status questionnaire underwent a fever check at the quarantine station, and if no abnormalities were found, they were guided to install a 'self-diagnosis application' on their smartphones. The quarantine authorities then directly confirmed whether contact information was received and issued a 'quarantine confirmation certificate.'

Some foreign passengers struggled with providing domestic contact information, similar to the special entry procedures conducted for Chinese nationals earlier last month. However, overall, the process went smoothly, likely because the system had been well established. An airport official said, "The special entry procedures and process are almost identical to those previously conducted for Chinese nationals. You can say the scope has just been expanded globally."

A screening clinic was also set up next to the quarantine station. Inside the clinic, quarantine officers dressed in white protective suits were on standby. Passengers who recorded a body temperature of 37.5 degrees Celsius or higher during the fever check at the quarantine station were either transferred to a facility quarantine location near the airport or tested at the specimen testing room near the screening clinic, depending on their condition.

An official from the Incheon Airport Quarantine Station stated, "After the fever check, passengers with issues are comprehensively assessed for respiratory and related symptoms. Passengers in serious condition are transferred to facility quarantine locations near the airport, while others have specimens collected immediately at the testing room. For those returning home, we guide them to minimize interpersonal contact by using their own vehicles or taxis."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.