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Piecemeal lifting of coronavirus travel restrictions likely, say experts
- Families, business and individuals trapped by patchwork of bans and quarantine rules in different countries
- Situation is likely to continue for months and travel in post-pandemic world is unlikely to be the same
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When Shawn Higgins and his family flew to the United States in January instead of returning to their home in Shenzhen, southern China, after their holiday in Thailand, they did not realise how complicated things were about to get.
Higgins, an American entrepreneur, and his wife, a Chinese designer, had been hearing news of a disease outbreak in China and decided it would be safer not to return there with their one-year-old son for the time being.
They arrived in the US just days after the country banned foreigners who had recently been to China as an early disease control measure. They had already been out of China for more than two weeks and were considered safe to enter the US.
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But, nearly three months later, with the outbreak now a pandemic, they face another problem: his wife’s US visa is running out and subsequent travel restrictions on foreign nationals entering China mean he is no longer allowed to return home. “We don’t want to have to split up our family,” Higgins said. “That would be devastating.”
They are among countless families, individuals and businesses who have been affected by the patchwork of restrictions that have been put up around the world in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
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