Key Points:
- The U.S. to open boarders for fully vaccinated individuals starting November.
- Exact date TBA.
- Further details on vaccine restrictions TBA.
The United States has closed its borders since the pandemic started to take flight back in March of 2020. With most of Europe being open since earlier this year and Canada opening its borders beginning of the month (September), it‘s only about time the U.S. welcomes tourists once more.
Jeff Zients, White House coordinator for COVID-19, told the media that “foreign nationals flying to the U.S. will be required to be fully vaccinated”. However, officials are considering some exceptions for children traveling into the country who are unable to get vaccinated. There are still more to be announced as there still are many questions to be answered. One of it being: if only individuals with U.S. approved vaccinations are allowed (Pfizer, Moderna, etc.). Mr. Zients states that more clarifications will be announced by the U.S. Center of Disease Control (CDC) soon. Inside sources from the White House told the BBC that further updates on the allowance of Astra Zeneca vaccine receivers and children between ages 12-18 who only received one dose will be announced later.
Meanwhile, the land borders around Mexico and Canada still have restrictions in place and the new travel policies only apply to those traveling by air. These new policies announced by Mr. Zients will be in effect early November but an exact date is still to be announced.