The United States on Monday will begin enforcing new Covid-19 testing and vaccination requirements for incoming air travelers. They apply to all air passengers ages 2 and older.
The U.S. is Costa Rica’s largest tourism market, with hundreds of thousands of visitors coming from the North American country each year. For a summary of Costa Rica’s entry requirements, click here.
The new U.S. guidelines read as follows, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):
| Type of Air Passenger (2 years or older) | Number of Days to get a COVID-19 Viral Test Before a Flight’s Departure to the US |
|---|---|
| Fully vaccinated | No more than 3 days |
| Not fully vaccinated | No more than 1 day |
On November 8, non-U.S. citizens who are not immigrants to the United States will be required to be fully vaccinated and provide proof of their vaccination status to fly to the United States. There will be very limited exceptions to this vaccination requirement for certain non-U.S. citizens who are not immigrants, including children under the age of 18.
Fully vaccinated air passengers, regardless of citizenship, will continue to be required to show a negative pre-departure COVID-19 test taken no more than three days before they board their flight to the United States. For passengers who are not fully vaccinated, the rules will tighten to require a test taken no more than one day before departing to the United States.
Travelers who recently recovered from Covid-19 may instead travel with documentation of recovery from Covid-19 (i.e., a positive COVID-19 viral test result on a sample taken no more than 90 days before the flight’s departure from a foreign country and a letter from a licensed healthcare provider or a public health official stating that you were cleared to travel).
All air passengers to the United States will also be required to provide basic contact information to airlines before boarding flights to the United States.
These travel requirements will be effective for air travel to the United States from any foreign country at or after 12:01AM ET on November 8, 2021.
Further guidance on the very limited exceptions to these vaccination requirements, what constitutes acceptable proof of vaccination, and other operational details are available on CDC’s website.
Per The New York Times: The U.S. will recognize any Covid-19 vaccine cleared by the United States or the World Health Organization, including mixed vaccinations. Digital or print proof of vaccination status will be required.
Some of the exceptions to the U.S. vaccine requirement include children and those coming from countries where vaccines aren’t widely available.
For more information about this requirement, visit the CDC website.
