

Recently, the World Health Organization urged all countries to avoid placing a financial burden on travelers through extensive testing regimes. While It Will Likely Remain In Place, Testing Requirement Is Also Being Reviewed Both RT-PCR and rapid antigen tests are accepted for travel to the country, as confirmed by the U.S. On the other hand, Holness has reminded travelers that pre-departure testing, which should be conducted three days before traveling, will most likely remain in place once the new revised guidelines are published in March. So far, all that has been announced is that travel-related quarantine will be “ eliminated“. Thus, this particular announcement has raised doubts on whether non-immunized individuals are now also able to bypass quarantine when visiting, or this refers to other situations and/or categories of travelers.Ĭurrently, when not remaining within a “resilient corridor”, Americans who are not vaccinated could be tested on arrival and are routinely issued a quarantine order for 14 days, regardless of having presented a negative test at the point of entry. Previously, Jamaica had already exempted vaccinated tourists from quarantining once leaving a travel corridor, while the unvaccinated have not been so lucky. End of travel-related quarantine requirements (more information to come).Travel authorization removed (from March 1).Maximum attendance at events raised from 50 to 100.Curfew hours will start at midnight and end at 5 a.m.Here is a summary of the changes expected in Jamaica:

What Could Change From March 1 For Visitors To Jamaica? As reported by the Jamaica Observer, the government will officially lift both the authorization form, and travel-related quarantine, meaning it will be far simpler to visit the island nation. However, now that the Omicron wave has peaked, Jamaica seems more confident in dropping the guard.

Once the form is reviewed by Jamaican officials and a traveler is “approved”, they will usually receive an “ authorization code” to present during check-in. During the application process, they are required to provide information relating to their health status and travel details. Instead of flying to Kingston for their long-awaited sunny break, millions of travelers have instead opted for other Caribbean competitors like Mexico, which have facilitated entry programs and have no Covid restrictions in place.Īt the moment, travelers must apply to travel to Jamaica through the official Visit Jamaica website. While it sought to stabilize Covid figures across Jamaica, they made it more difficult for the local tourism industry to recover. The requirements are part of the package of measures introduced in the Disaster Risk Management Act. Throughout most of the pandemic, tourists visiting Jamaica were subjected to strict rules, including pre-departure testing and mandatory quarantine when unvaccinated and staying outside a government-designated “ resilient corridor“. Due to come into effect on March 1, the measure will further de-bureaucratize entry rules. In an announcement made on February 22, the Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness confirmed foreigners traveling to Jamaica for tourism, including American and Canadian citizens, will no longer need to complete the travel authorization form in advance or quarantine. Besides reducing curfew hours, the country has now scrapped its travel authorization form and seemingly quarantine requirements.

As the epidemiological scenario continues to improve and Omicron seems to have been controlled, Jamaica is relaxing some of the restrictions which had been imposed across the island in late 2021 to fight the variant.
