Czechia Amends Measures for Persons Returning From Abroad

The Czech Republic’s Ministry of Health has announced that only persons from countries considered highly affected by the Coronavirus, such as the dark red and black category, will be obliged to present a negative test upon their arrival in the country.

Travel regulations and entry conditions, updated on April 5, also emphasize that non-essential travel is still prohibited while the entry requirements vary by country of origin, categorized as green, orange, red, dark red, and black, based on figures provided by the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the mode of transport when entering the country, AtoZSerwisPlus.com reports.

Travel regulations were changed on March 28 for the last time, when authorities in Germany excluded Czechia from the list of countries considered profoundly affected by the virus, permitting international land transport to enter Germany without the requirement to present a negative result COVID-19 test upon their arrival.

Hence, international transport drivers transiting through Czechia through Germany are not required to provide written confirmation that they have tested negative for the Coronavirus.

Such a decision pushed the country’s Ministry of Health to change the decree to say that all persons planning to enter Czechia must show a negative Coronavirus test upon their arrival.  However, on March 31, the Prague City Court annulled the decision, adding that the ministry did not clarify why this measure was justified.

Since then, it has been decided that only persons from countries in which the virus is roughly spread should present a negative result of the COVID-19 test.

Czechia’s Ministry of Health added that persons wishing to enter the country from territories with a high risk of infection such as red category, or those with medium risk of disease, such as orange category, will only be required to present a test result upon their arrival if they have used transport public to return.

“We have information that if one infected person gets on the plane, he can infect ten to twenty other people. They can then spread the disease in the country in which they occur. Therefore, we consider it necessary for persons to be tested before entering the Czech Republic territory, i.e. before boarding a means of transport,” the Minister of Health, Jan Blatný, pointed out.

Green

The green category includes low-risk countries such as Australia, Singapore,  New Zealand, South Korea, Thailand, and Vatican City. Citizens coming from any of these countries are not subject to any restrictions when entering Czechia.

Orange

The orange category includes medium-risk countries such as Portugal (excluding Madeira),  Iceland, Portugal, and the Balearic Islands (Spain). Travelers from these territories will be required to fill the Arrival Form upon their arrival.

In case that persons from this list arrive in Czechia by public transport, they must present a negative result of COVID-19.

Red

Currently, territories considered highly affected by the virus are Austria, Croatia, the Canary Islands, Finland, Germany, Denmark,  Greece, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Ireland,  Lithuania, Madeira, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Romania, Norway,  Spain, Slovakia, and Switzerland.

All travelers from the red category will be required to follow the same measures as those coming from the orange category. Additionally, they must submit a second PCR test taken in Czechia within five days of entry and stay self-isolated until they receive a negative test result.

Dark Red

The dark red list includes all other European Union Member States and non-European Union countries which are not mentioned above and are considered very high risk for the transmission of COVID-19.

Black

The list includes extreme risk territories such as Botswana, Eswatini (Swaziland), Brazil, South Africa, Tanzania, Lesotho, Kenya Malawi, Mozambique (including Zanzibar and Pemba), Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

Citizens and residents of Czechia are prohibited from traveling to these territories for unnecessary purposes from February 26 until April 11.

Earlier this week, Czechia’s government announced that it added Belgium and the Netherlands to its COVID-19 dark red list due to an increase in COVID-19 cases of infection.