Spain has become the second European country to announce new COVID restrictions for travellers from China
Due to a surge in cases in China, passengers will need to have a negative test result or be fully vaccinated to enter Spain. Travellers from China will have to show “proof that they are negative… or a full vaccination list,” Health Minister Carolina Darias told a press conference on Friday, December 30.
The Health Minister added that Spain would coordinate at a high level with other member countries to adopt a common policy while pushing for a revision of the current conditions that need to be met by travellers seeking to obtain the EU’s so-called Digital Covid Certificate.
Italy was the first European country to make coronavirus tests for visitors from China mandatory on Wednesday, December 28.
Coronavirus infections have surged in China, overwhelming hospitals as it unwinds hardline controls that torpedoed the economy and sparked nationwide protests.
A growing number of countries, including the United States, have imposed restrictions on all visitors from mainland China after Beijing decided to end mandatory quarantine on arrival, prompting many jubilant Chinese to make plans to travel abroad.
However, the European Union’s health agency said on Thursday that such restrictions weren’t warranted in the bloc. Chinese citizens have been largely confined to their country since Beijing largely restricted international travel in March 2020.
