Spain Brings Back Land Border Controls With Portugal Due to COVID-19
Spain and Portugal have agreed to reintroduce controls at land borders, in a bid to stop the spread of new variants of the Coronavirus pandemic which have affected many world countries.
The decision has been announced by Spain’s Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska and will be effective until February 10, AtoZSerwisPlus.com reports.
According to Spain’s government’s announcement, the following persons will be permitted to enter the Spanish territory under the recently imposed rules.
- Citizens of Spain together with their spouse or partner “with whom they maintain a union analogous to the conjugal one registered in a public registry“
- Spain’s residents who are required to prove their habitual residence, and students who pursue their studies in Spain
- Residents in the other Member States or Schengen Zone who go to their place of habitual residence
- Cross-border workers, transport workers as well as health workers
- Persons who need to enter the country for a humanitarian reason or other specific reason
- Members of diplomatic missions and other persons working in organisations located in Spain provided that their travel is related to their work
Spain’s Minister of the Interior stressed that entry and exit in Spain through its internal land border with Portugal could be permitted only through authorised passages.
Through the joint agreement between Spain and Portugal to close their land borders, persons are permitted to pass only through the following passages:
Passages that remain open 24 hours a day, daily.
- Tuy-Valença – Galicia / Pontevedra
- Verín-Vila Verde da Raia – Galicia / Ourense
- Alcañices Quintanilha – Castilla León / Zamora
- Fountains of Oñoro-Vilar Formoso – Castilla León / Salamanca
- Valencia de Alcántara-Marvão – Extremadura / Cáceres
- Badajoz-Elvas – Extremadura / Badajoz
- Rosal de la Frontera Vila Verde de Ficalho – Andalusia / Huelva
- Ayamonte-Castro Marim – Andalusia / Huelva
Passages that are opened from Monday to Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m., and from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. (Spanish time):
- Salvaterra Do Miño-Monçao – Galicia / Pontevedra
- Torregamones Miranda do Douro – Castilla León / Zamora
- Vilanova del Fresno-Mourao – Extremadura / Badajoz
- Encinasola-Barrancos – Andalusia / Huelva
The passage opened on Wednesdays and Fridays from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. is the one at the Zarzal la Mayor – Termas de Monfortinho – Extremadura / Cáceres.
Regarding the latest decision, the Portuguese Interior Minister said that Portugal’s government “will adopt a measure to the limitation of travel to and from Portugal for the next 15 days,” banning “access by air, water or land, except in exceptional cases.”
Spain is the seventh most infected country from the Coronavirus pandemic with a total of 2,830,478 COVID-19 cases registered up to this point, according to the statistics published by Worldometers. Over 58,310 persons have died from the deadly virus in Spain, as yet.
On Friday the country’s Health Ministry registered 38,118 new infections, and 513 persons died, as Spain’s authorities raise the alarm that the UK’s new variant is spreading rapidly.
Amid the rapid spread of the virus, Spain’s government previously announced that it supports the idea to impose a “vaccination certificate” that would facilitate the free movement of persons under the current circumstances.
Among the industries that have been hit hard by the Coronavirus pandemic, is Spain’s tourism sector.
In this regard, the President of the Tourism Board Juan Molas said that digitalisation, talent and personalisation will be the key points to help Spain’s tourism industry recover from the financial crisis caused by the disease.
As for Portugal, more than 720,510 persons have tested positive for the Coronavirus, while 12,482 persons have died, as yet.
