Netherlands scraps quarantine, with a catch

The Netherlands has decided to ease some of the restrictions that were previously placed on South Africa and other southern African countries as a result of the Omicron variant – with a catch.

Fully vaccinated travellers from South Africa will now be able to enter The Netherlands with no quarantine on arrival.

According to TravelNews, KLM confirmed that, with immediate effect, South Africa is now classified as a ‘high-risk country or area’. This is a marked improvement from the previous classification of ‘high-risk country or area where there is not a virus variant of concern’. These new entry regulations mean that vaccinated South African visitors are not required to isolate for 10 days upon arrival.

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The Netherlands entry requirements

Some of the specifications of the new regulations are that:

• Vaccinated travellers will now be able to enter the Netherlands with proof of vaccination, subject to visa requirements.
• Vaccinated passengers must also hold a negative PCR test taken no more than 48 hours before departure, or a negative Antigen test taken no more than 24 hours before departure.
• The EU entry ban unfortunately still applies to unvaccinated travellers, who may only enter the Netherlands if they fall under one of the exemption categories, subject to visa requirements.
• Unvaccinated passengers must hold a negative PCR test taken no more than 48 hours before departure, or a negative Antigen test taken no more than 24 hours before departure. They must also self-quarantine for 10 days upon arrival. If a negative test result can be provided on day five, the quarantine may end.
• Unvaccinated travellers must also complete the ‘Quarantine declaration’ form, which can be found here.
• All passengers must complete a ‘Health Declaration’ form which can be found here.

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