Chile will not require quarantine for vaccinated travelers entering country with negative PCR test

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The government of Chile announced that it would abolish the mandatory quarantine for all travelers entering the country who are vaccinated. This measure will come into effect on November 1 and will also require a negative diagnostic test.

The measure will affect citizens, foreigners, residents, or tourists.

Read also: Check out our coverage on Chile

“Considering the current figures of the low incidence of positive cases of Covid-19 in travels and the epidemiological background, mandatory quarantine will no longer be required for people entering the country with a complete vaccination schedule and a negative PCR test performed in national territory”, indicated the Undersecretary of Public Health, Paula Daza.

From November 23 last year to September 30 this year, the number of travelers who entered the country and tested positive was 0.7%, reported La Tercera newspaper.

In this context, this modification of the “Protected Borders Plan” contemplates that travelers will have to undergo a five-day quarantine or until they receive a negative result of a coronavirus test. It has also been established that children under six years of age may leave the country without a ‘mobility pass’.

The measures are intended to provide greater mobility to foreign tourists, thus boosting the reactivation of one of the sectors hardest hit by the pandemic.

In addition, travelers entering the country must be available for the first ten days in Chilean territory for the health authorities to be monitored.

This is in addition to the entry measures already announced by the Ministry of Health in mid-September, including the validation of a complete vaccination schedule, a sworn declaration, a negative PCR test within 72 hours before embarkation, and obtaining medical insurance for US$30,000.

The arrival of the coronavirus left a trail of multi-million dollar losses for the Chilean tourism industry: airports empty for months, hotels for sale, and borders closed for more than a year meant that the sector that contributed 3.3% of Chile’s GDP in 2018 closed 2020 without even reaching a third of those US$9 billion.

The blow correlated with the loss of thousands of jobs, mainly affecting the country’s regions with natural attractions. Given this, the tourism union considered the modifications presented in September as “insufficient”, alleging that the decision was taken to “kill a part of the industry”.

To date, 1.6 million people have been infected by the coronavirus in Chile. According to the Department of Statistics and Information of the Ministry of Health, deaths amount to more than 45,000 people, considering confirmed and suspected cases.

After weeks registering a progressive decrease in the number of cases, the government decided not to renew the state of catastrophe decreed in March 2020. As of October 1, Chile lifted the curfew.