Domestic Vaccination Completers' Diagnostic Tests Upon Entry Reduced from 4 to 2 Times Abroad (Supplement)

On the 24th, amid concerns over the spread of new variants of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), overseas arrivals are waiting for transportation guidance at Terminal 1 arrivals hall of Incheon International Airport. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Seo So-jeong] From now on, individuals who have completed COVID-19 vaccination in Korea will have their diagnostic tests upon entering the country from abroad reduced from the previous total of four times to two times.

The Central Disease Control Headquarters announced that it is implementing adjusted quarantine measures for domestic vaccination completers, reflecting changes in quarantine policies due to vaccination progress and vaccination effectiveness, and that these revised guidelines will be enforced starting from the 5th.

First, if a vaccinated person has close contact with a confirmed case and is asymptomatic, and if the confirmed case is not an overseas entrant, quarantine will be exempted, and the individual will be managed as a passive monitoring subject instead of an active monitoring subject.

Accordingly, the diagnostic tests previously conducted three times in total (immediately after contact classification, 6?7 days after contact, and 12?13 days after contact) will be adjusted to once (6?7 days after contact).

Active monitoring involves daily telephone check-ins by the public health center, while passive monitoring requires the individual to self-monitor their health and contact the public health center if symptoms develop.

For those who have completed vaccination domestically and return after traveling abroad two weeks later, they will also be managed as passive monitoring subjects if certain conditions are met.

In this case, the diagnostic tests previously conducted four times in total (72 hours before entry, 1 day after entry, 6?7 days after entry, and 12?13 days after entry) will be adjusted to twice (72 hours before entry and 6?7 days after entry).

However, the individual must be asymptomatic and must not have entered from countries where Beta, Gamma, or Delta variants are prevalent.

Vaccinated individuals must undergo PCR testing during the monitoring period, and failure to comply will result in conversion to self-quarantine. Additionally, they must strictly adhere to the 'passive monitoring lifestyle rules' during this period.

Furthermore, domestic vaccination completers have been expanded to include those who have received all recommended doses per vaccine type and whose vaccination status is verified by a domestically issued vaccination certificate. This also includes those who completed vaccination with one dose domestically and one dose abroad.

However, for those who completed vaccination overseas, verification methods for the authenticity of certificates issued by foreign authorities will be established in the future, and adjustment measures will be applied sequentially starting with countries where bilateral agreements or the principle of reciprocity are in place.

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