Quarantine for Overseas Entrants Lifted from the 8th Regardless of Vaccination Status... Retroactive Application

COVID-19 Testing Maintained Twice: Before and After Entry

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Young-won] Starting from the 8th, overseas entrants who have not received the COVID-19 vaccine will also be exempt from quarantine upon entry.

On the 3rd, the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters announced that, in response to the continuous decrease in domestic COVID-19 cases and the stabilization of overseas occurrences, the final stage of the post-Omicron entry system reform, the quarantine exemption measure, will be implemented from the 8th. The headquarters also explained that they considered the trend of countries such as Germany, the United Kingdom, and Denmark exempting overseas entrants from quarantine obligations.

With this measure, from the 8th, the 7-day quarantine obligation for all overseas entrants will be lifted regardless of vaccination status or nationality. Previously, only overseas entrants who had completed COVID-19 vaccination were exempt from quarantine. Unvaccinated individuals were required to quarantine for 7 days after entry.

The quarantine exemption will also be applied retroactively to those who entered before the 8th. They will be exempt from quarantine starting on the 8th. However, if a COVID-19 test conducted after entry confirms a positive result, quarantine must be observed.

Considering the necessity of monitoring overseas variants, the authorities have maintained the original requirement of two mandatory COVID-19 tests for overseas entrants. Overseas entrants must undergo a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test or a professional rapid antigen test before entry, and a PCR test within 3 days after entry.

Domestic residents and long-term foreign residents can receive free testing at public health centers responsible for their residence or accommodation. Short-term foreign visitors, such as tourists, must pay for testing at airport testing centers or similar facilities.

With this overseas entry system reform and the normalization of international flights leading to an increase in overseas entrants, the authorities plan to expand quarantine personnel and, if concerning variants emerge or domestic COVID-19 cases resurge, will strengthen overseas entry management again.

Meanwhile, the authorities stated that they will actively encourage the use of the Quarantine Information Pre-Entry System (Q-code) to reduce waiting times for overseas entrants and enable efficient post-entry management.

The goal is to simplify the reporting process and improve the convenience of using the Q-code, increasing the current usage rate from 60% to 80%. Previously, the Q-code required input of ▲pre-entry test ▲health status questionnaire ▲vaccination ▲quarantine exemption information, but it will be simplified to allow input of only pre-entry test information and health status questionnaire information.

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