China to scrap Covid tests for inbound travellers, 8 months after reopening
- From Wednesday, foreign travellers will no longer be required to provide health declarations for entry
- China is one of the last countries to drop Covid-19 test requirements
China will no longer require negative Covid-19 test results from inbound travellers starting from Wednesday.
The announcement was made by China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin on Monday.
After three years of stringent measures, including compulsory polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests and quarantine upon arrivals, China in January scrapped its controversial zero-Covid policy and opened its borders, meaning there would no longer be compulsory quarantine upon arrivals.
The rules were further relaxed in April when incoming travellers only had to declare a negative RAT test taken within 48 hours of boarding.
Travellers have been required to tick positive or negative in the health condition section in the health declaration form. For many, completing the form has been more a matter of formality given that it was difficult to verify the declaration since the tests were conducted by the travellers themselves.