CORONAVIRUS/Taiwan to lift entry quarantine, reopen to all visitors Oct. 13

Taipei, Sept. 29 (CNA) Travelers to Taiwan will no longer be required to quarantine on arrival, with effect from Oct. 13, while visitors from all countries will again be allowed to enter, but the number of arrivals will be capped at 150,000 per week, Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) announced Thursday.

Starting Oct. 13, travelers aged 2 years and over will be given four COVID-19 rapid antigen test kits when they arrive in Taiwan, and they will be required to observe seven days of "self-initiated epidemic prevention," in line with the new protocol, dubbed "0+7," according to Cabinet spokesman Lo Ping-cheng (羅秉成).

Under the "0+7" protocol, no quarantine will be mandated, but during the seven days of "self-initiated epidemic prevention," travelers will have to do a rapid test on the day of arrival or the next day, Lo said, citing Su, at a press conference following a Cabinet meeting.

Travelers will be allowed outside during the seven-day period once they obtain a negative COVID-19 rapid test every two days, he said.

If a visitor who is staying in a hotel tests positive during the seven-day period, they will be required to relocate to a government-run quarantine center or a designated quarantine hotel, Lo said.

The decision to end the mandatory three-day quarantine for arrivals was made at Thursday's Cabinet meeting, after Premier Su visited Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport the previous day to inspect its readiness for the border opening, Lo said.

While the borders will reopen Oct. 13 to all visitors, the number of arrivals will be limited to 150,000 per week, as part of Taiwan's ongoing COVID-19 control efforts, Lo said.

● Taiwan's updated COVID-19 protocols for arriving travelers from Oct. 13

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Meanwhile, Taiwan began a first-phase easing of its entry regulations Thursday, when it ended its mandate for COVID-19 PCR testing on arrival, but it is maintaining its "3+4" policy until Oct. 12, which means travelers arriving in the next two weeks will still have to quarantine for three days and observe four days of "self-initiated disease prevention."

During this first phase, Taiwan's borders will also be reopened to visitors who are eligible for visa-free entry, while the cap on the number of arrivals to the country will raised from 50,000 to 60,000, the government said.

When the second phase starts on Oct. 13, visitors from countries that are not part of Taiwan's mutual visa-waiver program will again be allowed entry, and the weekly limit on arrivals will be increased to 150,000, the government said.

The ban on incoming and outgoing tour groups organized by travel agencies, which was imposed in March 2020, will also be lifted on Oct. 13, according to the government.

Also on Thursday

Sept. 29: Taiwan's new COVID-19 protocols for arriving passengers

Sept. 29: Measures to lift Taiwan's border controls take effect