Covid: France to require negative tests for arrivals from China, government says

Author: Editors Desk Source: France 24

December 30, 2022 at 14:25

A health worker takes a swab sample from a woman to test for Covid-19 in the Jing'an district in Shanghai on December 22, 2022. © Hector Retamal, AFP

rance will require that travellers arriving from China provide a negative Covid-19 test result less than 48 hours old before departure, the health ministry said in a statement on Friday.

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The test will be required on direct flights from China and flights with stopovers. Travellers on airplanes arriving from China will also have to wear masks.

No date was set for the introduction of the measures but a government decree will be published and notified to European Union member states, the ministry said.

The French decision comes as countries including the US, Japan, India, Taiwan, Israel and the UK have imposed mandatory testing restrictions on travellers arriving from China.

EU countries have not yet agreed a unified approach for travel rules. While France joins Italy and Spain in requiring negative tests from arrivals from China, Germany said on Friday it sees no need for routine testing.

>> EU urges members to step up Covid variant sequencing amid China surge

China on Monday announced that it would end quarantine for arrivals, easing international travel for Chinese residents for the first time since March 2020.

(FRANCE 24 with REUTERS and AFP)