U.S. to fully open Borders to Fully Vaccinated travellers from Nov. 8

The United States is set to reopen its borders to fully vaccinated travellers by air, land or sea starting Nov. 8, the US government has announced.

Air travellers will need to show proof of vaccination on arrival in the U.S. but will still need to show a pre-departure negative COVID-19 test taken within three days of boarding their flight.

Non-essential travellers crossing at a land border will be required to show proof of vaccination or attest to their vaccination status upon request by a border agent but unlike air travellers, they will face no requirement to show a negative COVID-19 test.

The US government made the announcement on Friday, October 15, saying that from January, essential travellers crossing at a land border will also be required to be fully vaccinated.

A number of details are still being worked out by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC). They include the type of documentation that will be accepted to prove a traveller’s vaccination status and whether travellers who received doses of two different vaccines will be considered fully vaccinated.

The CDC, on Friday also informed affected airlines that any vaccine approved in the U.S, as well as vaccines that have been approved for emergency use by the World Health Organization, will be accepted for air travel.

U.S. President Joe Biden and his administration have been under increasing pressure in recent weeks to follow Canada’s lead and open the border to non-essential travel.