All travellers to India have to submit a self-declaration form on the online Air Suvidha portal at the New Delhi Airport website (www.newdelhiairport.in) before the scheduled travel time. A negative Covid-19 RT-PCR test report (conducted within 72 hours of departure). Also, a declaration is needed to be submitted about the authenticity of the report
Now that India has opened its doors for tourism from October 15, 2021, for charter operators, and November 15, 2021, for everyone else, rules have come into effect for international travel to India.
Prescribed by the Indian Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the rules point out that all travellers to India have to submit a self-declaration form on the online Air Suvidha portal at the New Delhi Airport website (www.newdelhiairport.in) before the scheduled travel time. A negative Covid-19 RT-PCR test report (conducted within 72 hours of departure). Also, a declaration is needed to be submitted about the authenticity of the report.
Airlines will allow boarding only for passengers who have filled in the Self Declaration Form on the Air Suvidha portal and uploaded the negative RT-PCR test report/vaccination certificate. When boarding the flight, only asymptomatic travellers will be allowed to board after the thermal screening.
On arrival, thermal screening will be done for all passengers and another check on the self-declaration form filled online will be made. Only after that will they be allowed to go.
Those arriving in India from the US will need an RT-PCR test pre-departure, and will not need to do a test on arrival or enter quarantine.
Based on reciprocity, travellers from all countries that provide quarantine-free entry to Indians will be allowed certain relaxations on arrival (Category A Countries). Instead of getting RT-PCR tests done, passport holders of these countries need to upload their full vaccination certificates instead. Fifteen days must have elapsed since completion of the COVID-19 vaccination schedule to be considered eligible.
Category A countries as of October 20, 2021 are United Kingdom; France; Germany; Nepal; Belarus; Lebanon; Armenia; Ukraine; Belgium; Hungary; and, Serbia.
Travellers from France, the UK are fully vaccinated, they will be allowed to leave the airport with no questions asked. However, if they are not fully vaccinated, they will need to get tested on arrival and then on Day 8.
Travellers from countries at risk, if fully vaccinated, will be allowed to leave the airport and self-monitor for 14 days after arrival. The current list on October 20, 2021, includes:Countries in Europe, including The United Kingdom; South Africa; Brazil; Bangladesh; Botswana; China; Mauritius; New Zealand; and Zimbabwe.
For countries not on the reciprocity list, for example, Spain, their fully vaccinated people will be treated as unvaccinated and need to do RT-PCR on arrival, then again on Day 8
If travellers from these countries are not fully vaccinated, they will need to get an RT-PCR test on arrival in India before leaving the airport and home quarantine for seven days. They will need to re-test on Day 8 and then, if negative, self-monitor for seven more days.
That means for travellers from France, the UK are fully vaccinated, they will be allowed to leave the airport with no questions asked. However, if they are not fully vaccinated, they will need to get tested on arrival and then on Day 8.
For countries not on the reciprocity list, for example, Spain, their fully vaccinated people will be treated as unvaccinated and need to do RT-PCR on arrival, then again on Day 8.
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