~ Requirements for US to be harsher soon ~
PHILIPSBURG--Government on Wednesday issued travel bans for passengers travelling from the United Kingdom (UK), South Africa, and 11 Latin American countries until further notice. This is part of several changes to St. Maarten’s travel requirements.
The banned Latin American countries are Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela. Also on the banned list are Suriname, Guyana, and French Guiana.
Persons who have been to any of these countries in the 14 days prior to travelling to St. Maarten will not be allowed to enter, except for Dutch- and French-side residents and those living in Saba and St. Eustatius.
The residents of these three islands can be tested on arrival at Princess Juliana International Airport (PJIA) for a US $125 fee. The Electronic Health Authorization System (EHAS) application must be completed.
The travel changes also affect travellers from Aruba, who now will also need to have a negative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test with 72 hours of departure.
As of February 12, the rt-PCR test timeframe will be reduced from 120 to 72 hours before departure to St. Maarten for all travellers originating from a high-risk country. Currently, a negative rt-PCR test obtained from a naso-pharyngeal swab performed within 120 hours prior to departure (last leg in case of connecting flights) is required for all travellers originating from a high-risk country.
St. Maarten classifies a high-risk country as any not on its list of low-risk countries. Travellers residing in and travelling from a low-risk country are exempted from the mandatory rt-PCR test unless they visited a high-risk country in the 14 days before departure.
The low-risk countries are Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Barbados, Bermuda, Bonaire, the British Virgin Islands (BVI), Cayman Islands, the People’s Republic of China, Curaçao, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, New Zealand, Saba, St. Eustatius, St. Barths, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Singapore, and Thailand.
This means that the United States (US) is classified as a high-risk country. The reduction from 120 to 72 hours will probably make it harder for US travellers to enter the country, and is a reversal of government’s September 2020 decision to increase the testing timeframe to make it easier for those coming from the US.
The full travel requirements can be found at
www.stmaartenehas.com/travel-requirements.
https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/govt-issues-travel-bans-for-the-uk-south-africa-and-10-latin-countries
