Vaccinated Maldivians granted quarantine-free entry to India

Maldives has been added to the list of countries from where travelers are exempt from quarantine.

Indian Health Ministry has released a guideline, announcing that starting February 14, travelers from countries that have agreements with India on mutual recognition of vaccination certificates of nationally or WHO recognized vaccines, as well as countries that offer quarantine exemptions to Indian travelers who are fully vaccinated with nationally or WHO recognized vaccines will be granted quarantine-free entry to India.

The exemption is only for travelers who have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

India had tightened travel restrictions in face of a surge in cases of the Omicron variant in January, mandating 7-day quarantine for all inbound international travelers.

According to the new guideline, travelers from countries exempt from quarantine will need to present proof of a negative PCR test taken maximum 72 hours prior to departure, and their travel history for the last 14 days.

Travelers are required to upload their vaccination certificate to the Air Suvidha portal, as well as a self-declaration form confirming the validity of the information and agreeing full compliance with COVID-19 measures imposed by Indian authorities.

India has also announced that 2 percent of passengers on each flight to India will be randomly tested.

India, the world’s second-most populous country, is one of the countries hardest hit due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with 507,981 fatalities. However, the situation in India has improved significantly with progress in vaccination.