From vaccines to testing: What travelers need to know before the new US travel system launches on Nov. 8

[millefleur 5,046]

Quote

The United States is about to make it much easier for vaccinated international travelers to visit.

 

The White House announced Friday that a new air travel system will take effect Nov. 8, allowing entry for fully vaccinated foreign tourists. The system is set to launch more than 20 months after the U.S. began imposing travel restrictions to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

 

The move by the White House will essentially have the U.S. drop its travel ban on dozens of countries while also making entry more challenging for the unvaccinated. The new system will allow entry for foreign nationals only with vaccinations approved by the World Health Organization and would add testing requirements for unvaccinated Americans.

 

....

 

The FDA has authorized three COVID-19 vaccines for emergency use during the pandemic: Moderna, Johnson & Johnson and Pfizer-BioNTech, the last of which has received the FDA's full stamp of approval.

 

Vaccines with WHO approval include:

• Johnson & Johnson

• Moderna

• Pfizer-BioNTech

• Oxford-AstraZeneca/Covishield

• Sinopharm

• Sinovac

 

The CDC confirmed Friday that it would accept a mix-and-match approach to vaccinations. Travelers who have any combination of FDA- or WHO-approved vaccines will be considered fully vaccinated.

 

Read more here: https://www.yahoo.com/now/vaccines-testing-travelers-know-us-202115155.html

[JeanneAdil 6,489]

so about time they thought about issuing vaccine passports here so we can also travel without questions

[millefleur 5,046]

3 minutes ago, JeanneAdil said:

so about time they thought about issuing vaccine passports here so we can also travel without questions

I bet there will be really long wait times at the POE's as they attempt to check everyone's very different looking vaccine proof documents.

 

I'm curious how many will unsuspectingly travel to the US vaccinated and will be turned away at the border.

[Chancy 6,241]

1 hour ago, millefleur said:

I'm curious how many will unsuspectingly travel to the US vaccinated and will be turned away at the border.

 

They probably won't make it to the border even.  CBP will likely delegate the vaccination check to the airlines, like they already do with the COVID test check.  Those not in compliance with the new rules will probably not be checked in at all and will be told to re-book their flights when they're vaccinated with the accepted brands.

 

[millefleur 5,046]

2 hours ago, Chancy said:

CBP will likely delegate the vaccination check to the airlines, like they already do with the COVID test check. 

That's a good point. I wonder if they will be re-checking as people cross the border. I guess we'll find out come November 8th.

[JeanneAdil 6,489]

sorry but all i  got when vaccinated was an index card with information / plain old paper index card

 

with today's computers and printers it would be easy to do a fake one

 

there was a 16 year old that lost his job at McDonald's and copied the logo from a food bag and made out fake paychecks for himself to the tune of over $5000 before  he was caught 

we can do anything on a computer 

 

so, how do i really know the people around me are really vaccinated ?    i will keep wearing a mask 

[J B L 4]

So you no longer need to do a test 3 days prior to coming to the USA?

[Chancy 6,241]

7 minutes ago, J B L said:

So you no longer need to do a test 3 days prior to coming to the USA?

 

Negative COVID test result still required and will continue to be required after Nov 8.

 

[millefleur 5,046]

1 hour ago, J B L said:

So you no longer need to do a test 3 days prior to coming to the USA?

It's in the article:

 

What are the entry requirements for foreign nationals?

Starting Nov. 8, vaccinated foreign air travelers will need to show proof of full vaccination as well as a pre-departure negative coronavirus test taken within three days of travel before they can board a plane to the U.S.

[millefleur 5,046]

3 hours ago, JeanneAdil said:

with today's computers and printers it would be easy to do a fake one

I wondered the same thing. Even the CDC vax cards have no anti-forgery printing or techniques on them. It looks more like a document for your personal records than to be any kind of "proof".

[JeanneAdil 6,489]

20 minutes ago, millefleur said:

I wondered the same thing. Even the CDC vax cards have no anti-forgery printing or techniques on them. It looks more like a document for your personal records than to be any kind of "proof".

fingerprint is a good idea 

how about an ID bracelet like we do for a diabetic?

it will come to that or a better system after they figure out all their errors 

we should probably carry a complete list of vaccinations when traveling 

been watching TV shows about pandemics for years now but seems even the ones that were spreading the rumors had no idea what to do if something happened 

[millefleur 5,046]

2 minutes ago, JeanneAdil said:

we should probably carry a complete list of vaccinations when traveling 

Those technically already exist and I have one of those from a company who specializes in foreign travel to places where disease is rampant (I think it's called Passport Health?) It's just a yellow fold-out card, also has no anti-forgery or protective printing on it. It looks kind of like this, but it's a little booklet with multiple pages. The doctors put stickers in it of the vaccines you received, it looks kind of like this:

 

 

 

It seems like this yellow booklet is standardized around the world so I don't get why we can't just implement it for Covid. If it's worked before, seems logical to just continue that.

[Chancy 6,241]

6 minutes ago, millefleur said:

It seems like this yellow booklet is standardized around the world so I don't get why we can't just implement it for Covid.

 

I plan to get one of those before I travel.  Another VJ member from my home country got their COVID vaccination record added onto their government-issued yellow book.  I'm concerned that the wallet-sized card I was given at the vaccination center may not be accepted for US travel.  Hopefully the yellow book will be more credible.

 

[Ontarkie 14,218]

1 hour ago, millefleur said:

Those technically already exist and I have one of those from a company who specializes in foreign travel to places where disease is rampant (I think it's called Passport Health?) It's just a yellow fold-out card, also has no anti-forgery or protective printing on it. It looks kind of like this, but it's a little booklet with multiple pages. The doctors put stickers in it of the vaccines you received, it looks kind of like this:

 

 

 

It seems like this yellow booklet is standardized around the world so I don't get why we can't just implement it for Covid. If it's worked before, seems logical to just continue that.

I tried to get the yellow booklet for my younger two. They pediatrics office no longer uses them since it's all on file.

Funny thing is I keep getting emails from this so called program about vaccines they don't have on record. Seems the program sucks and paper rules. I still have mine from when the start of my vaccine history. Older than dirt but more accurate then the only stuff they keep trying. 

[slavaskii 886]

As an update, CNN International posted this morning that the new requirements will come out in 'waves', with the first being November 8 when it will be required for non-essential visitors, and then sometime in January 2022 for everyone else. I don't think there's any more information about what types of proof will be necessary; my fiancee only has the physical certificate given to her and signed by the doctor, as well as the EU Digital Covid Certificate given 14 days after. From my understanding, it will be checked both at the airport's check-in and by the CBP officer. My guess is that if you leave from a European airport, they'll be more than willing to send someone through who has the EUDCC, whereas if you're somewhere else (Africa, Russia, China) they may desire something more. I doubt the CBP officers can be picky considering the vast amount of travelers who will be coming in with various proof of vaccination. 

 

In regard to the yellow booklet above, I've heard of people getting a "yellow book" for COVID shots when going to clinics in Amsterdam and Berlin, but I'm not sure if they're the same as you are describing. I personally really like the EU's approach with the QR codes, but if we can't even standardize the yellow booklets, we have a long time before we do that In any case, I wouldn't be worried about a traveler's card not being accepted for international travel; recall that Americans have literal index cards with stickers on them, and the EU (begrudgingly, it seemed) still accepted them nonetheless. Now that we're the country accepting everyone else, I doubt we're in any position to say what is or is not acceptable when we're the exception.