Remove quarantine and testing for...

IATA calls on governments to simplify travel requirements; key recommendations include removing quarantine and testing for fully vaccinated travellers

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has called on governments to adopt simple and practical measures to facilitate an increase in international travel as borders re-open.

The IATA has urged governments to focus on three key areas:

Simplified health protocols
Digital solutions to process health credentials
Measures proportionate to risk levels with a continuous review process

The industry’s vision to address the situation is outlined in the newly released policy paper titled, ‘From Restart to Recovery: A Blueprint for Simplifying Travel’.

Key recommendations include removing all travel barriers (including quarantine and testing) for those fully vaccinated with a WHO-approved vaccine and enabling quarantine-free travel for non-vaccinated travellers with a negative pre-departure antigen test result.

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The IATA also recommends that the management of travel health credentials (vaccination or testing certificates) should be handled digitally and enable travellers to complete the process in advance so that they can arrive at the airport ready-to-travel. This will facilitate automated check-in processes, reducing airport queuing and wait-times.

IATA deputy director general Conrad Clifford said: “Over the next months we need to move from individual border openings to the restoration of a global air transport network that can reconnect communities and facilitate economic recovery.”

Clifford added: “We must have processes in place to safely and efficiently manage the ramping-up of international travel as borders re-open. Over 100,000 Covid-19 related measures have been implemented by governments worldwide. This complexity is a barrier to global mobility that is exacerbated by the inconsistencies these measures have created among states.”

For more information, visit www.iata.org