MALDIVES: Negative COVID-19 results mandatory for Maldives tourists

From 10 September, the Maldives government has made it mandatory for all tourists to present a negative COVID-19 test certificate upon arrival in the country. The Ministry of Tourism said the PCR test must be carried out within 72 hours of departure from the country of origin.
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UNITED AIRLINES: U.S. airline announces new Indian routes to New Delhi and Bengaluru

The U.S. airline has announced that it will offer two new Indian routes, which will commence flying in the coming months. A daily flight between Chicago and New Delhi will operate from December; a flight from San Francisco to Bengaluru, which will be the first non-stop service between the U.S. and South India, will also operate from Spring 2021.
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ZIMBABWE: Country to resume international flights from 10 September 2020

The country's government has said that Zimbabwe will resume domestic flights from 10 September, and international flights from October, in an effort to boost tourism; travellers will though be required to have a certificate clearing them of COVID-19. All travellers will be required to provide a negative COVID-19 PCR test result issued by a recognised facility, obtained a maximum of 48 hours from the date of departure.
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UNITED KINGDOM: Arrivals to England from seven Greek islands to be required to self-isolate

The UK government has announced that from 04.00 (local time) on 9 September, both arrivals and returning passengers to England from the Greek islands of Crete, Lesvos, Mykonos, Santorini, Serifos, Tinos and Zakynthos will be required to self-quarantine for 14 days. In addition, the UK's Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has also advised British nationals against all but essential travel to these destinations, based on the risk currently presented due to their levels of COVID-19. The mainland, and remaining islands within the country, remain exempt from these changes. Meanwhile, the devolved government of Scotland has placed the same restrictions on all arrivals to Scotland from anywhere in Greece since 3 September.
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DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Country to introduce free COVID-19 insurance policy for visitors

The government of the Dominican Republic has announced that from 15 September until 31 December it will provide visitors with a COVID-19 travel assistance insurance policy free of charge. Similar to a policy from Spain’s Canary Islands, and airline Virgin Atlantic, the policy will cover expenses that could be incurred relating to COVID-19 while in-destination. The news comes days after the Dominican Republic also announced that they will be dropping the current requirement for visitors to provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test result on arrival, in favour of random, rapid testing on arrival.
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JORDAN: Country to resume regular international flights from 8 September 2020

Jordan will resume regular international flights on 8 September, following a shutdown of nearly six months due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Queen Alia International Airport in Jordan's capital of Amman will initially handle just six flights per day, and arriving passengers will need proof of a negative COVID-19 test result obtained within 72 hours of travel, followed by a further mandatory test on arrival. Arrivals will be subject to between one and two weeks of self-isolation or state quarantine depending on the severity of the pandemic in their country of origin. A total of 43 countries will be allowed to enter Jordan for tourism, classified into three categories based on the scale of the COVID-19 outbreak within their own borders.
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NAMIBIA: Country eases self-isolation requirements for tourists

The tourism ministry of Namibia has announced that it has further eased restrictions on international tourists to encourage an increase in visitors; according to the amendments, arrivals are now permitted to travel to their pre-booked destination and take part in activities for up to five days, after which they will be tested for COVID-19. If they stay at their pre-booked destination for less than five days, they can proceed to another destination without a test. Under rules previously introduced in July, tourists were required to self-isolate at their first destination for seven days, which resulted in a large number of cancellations.
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AUSTRALIA: City of Melbourne extends COVID-19 lockdown by two weeks until 28 September 2020

A strict COVID-19 lockdown in the Australian city of Melbourne has been extended by at least two weeks until 28 September, following an announcement by the state premier; the current stage four restrictions were previously due to ease from 13 September. A gradual easing of the measures will be implemented from October. In the meantime, city residents will be subject to a slightly eased curfew, from 21.00 to 05.00 (local time) daily.
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UNITED KINGDOM: Government of Wales announces updated travel corridor restrictions

The government of the devolved UK administration of Wales has said that as of 04.00 (GMT+1) this morning, 4 September, arrivals from mainland Portugal, Gibraltar, French Polynesia and six Greek Islands must self-isolate on arrival. Among the Greek islands affected are Crete, Zakynthos, Mykonos, Lesvos, Paros and Antiparos. The announcement is the first time that the government of Wales has opted to set different quarantine rules to those of England and the UK government.
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UNITED KINGDOM: Government of Scotland announces updated quarantine requirements from 5 September 2020

The government of the devolved UK administration of Scotland has said that as of 04.00 (GMT+1) tomorrow, 5 September, arrivals from Portugal and French Polynesia must self-isolate on arrival. The announcement is the latest in a number of occasions over the last few months whereby the government of Scotland has opted to set different quarantine rules to those of England and the UK government.
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AUSTRALIA: Country's prime minister hopes to open interstate borders by December 2020

The country’s prime minister has said that he’s pressing state governments within Australia to re-open their internal borders by December in order to ease interstate travel restrictions. He also pledged to bring more Australians home, which would involve the raising of the current cap of 4,000 international arrivals per week to the country's airports.
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MALAYSIA: Country restricts entry for long-term visa holders from nine further countries

The government of Malaysia yesterday, 3 September, added at least nine more countries to its list of those from which long-term immigration pass holders will be barred entry to the country. From 7 September, entry will be restricted for those with the aforementioned visas from countries including the UK, United States, France, India, Indonesia and the Philippines.
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DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Country to ease COVID-19 pre-testing requirements from October 2020

The government of the Dominican Republic has announced that from the end of September it will eliminate the entry requirement for arriving international visitors whereby proof of a negative COVID-19 test result, obtained a maximum of five days prior to departure, must be presented. In it's place, a new system will use a rapid breathalyzer-style test performed on selected passengers at random. The test takes five minutes to return results, and reportedly detects if passengers have been exposed to COVID-19 within the previous four hours.
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NEW ZEALAND: Country to retain COVID-19 lockdown measures until mid-September 2020

The country’s prime minister today, 4 September, announced the retention of current COVID-19 restrictions in New Zealand until at least mid-September; this means that Auckland will remain on alert level 2.5, limiting gatherings to no more than 10 people, and the rest of the country will remain on the less restricted alert level 2. A review will be due on 14 September.
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UNITED KINGDOM: Country's government expected to remove Portugal from it's list of quarantine-exempt countries

The UK government is expected to today, 3 September, remove Portugal from it's 'travel corridor' list due to a surge in COVID-19 cases within the country. If removed, visitors or returning passengers arriving in England from Portugal will be required to self-isolate for 14 days. The official announcement is being awaited.
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GREECE: Country to increase restrictions on arrivals from Russia from 7-21 September 2020

The government of Greece has announced that it will require visitors from Russia to present a negative COVID-19 test before entering the country between 7-21 September. Under the new advisory, Russian citizens will need to obtain the test result a maximum of 72 hours prior to their arrival. Greece also said that a maximum 500 people from Russia will be allowed to land at the airports of Athens, Thessaloniki and Heraklion per week during the period in question.
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VIETNAM: Country plans to resume flights to six Asian cities from September 2020

The country’s government has said that it plans to resume international commercial flights to and from six Asian cities from mid-September; the destinations proposed are Guangzhou, Seoul, Vientiane, Phnom Penh, Taipei and Tokyo. Arriving passengers to Vietnam will still be required to undergo two weeks of quarantine.
Japan
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NIGERIA: Country relaxes nationwide curfew but denies entry to some international airlines

The government of Nigeria has announced the country's third gradual easing of its COVID-19 lockdown; it will last for four weeks and during this period a curfew will now be in place for four hours daily from 00.01 (local time) to 04.00. However, ahead of international flights finally resuming from 5 September, some airlines will be initially denied entry, and a list has now been released. Some airlines though have been denied approval because international flights were yet to resume in their countries; approved airlines are expected to operate within COVID-19 protocols.
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INDIGO: Indian low-cost airline commences flights between the Maldives and India from 3 September 2020

Indian low-cost airline IndiGo will from today, 3 September, commence flights between the capital of the Maldives, Male and India's Kochi under a bilateral air bubble agreement. Initially this new service will operate twice per week.
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