The Dutch government has decided to lift the quarantine requirement that currently applies to arrivals from very high-risk countries.
“From February 25, 2022, people travelling from very high-risk areas are no longer required by law to self-quarantine on arrival,” the statement of the government reads.
According to this statement, starting from February 25, travellers from very high-risk third countries will no longer be required to follow the self-isolation rule provided that they have been fully vaccinated or recovered from the virus.
In addition, it has been emphasised that everyone will be required “to have a negative test result to enter the country,” SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
The Netherlands’ very high-risk list currently includes all non-EU countries with the exception of Bahrain, Chile, China, Colombia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Kuwait, Macau, New Zealand, Peru, Qatar, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Taiwan, United Arab Emirates, and Uruguay.
The current rules on the quarantine that will remain effective until February 25 apply to all travellers who reach the Netherlands from a very high-risk third country regardless of the travellers’ vaccination or recovery status.
However, as soon as the new regulation enters into force, third country travellers will be able to enter the Netherlands without being subject to strict entry measures.
As for travellers from the EU, the authorities have explained that they will continue to be able to enter the Netherlands under facilitated rules provided that they have been vaccinated, tested, or recovered from the virus.
Apart from changing the rules for incoming travellers from third countries, the Netherlands has also updated the travel rules for its citizens.
The Dutch authorities have revealed that it will now be easier for nationals of the Netherlands to travel abroad as the country will no longer issue travel advisories based entirely on a country’s COVID-19 situation.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will no longer issue travel advisories based solely on a country’s coronavirus situation. Instead, it will once again take all security and health risks into consideration. This means that travel outside Europe will soon become easier,” the government noted.
This means that the Netherlands will update its travel system to include not only the epidemiological situation of one country but also the traveller’s vaccination and recovery status.
Thus, since fewer countries will have travel advisories, the Dutch citizens will be able to travel under more facilitated rules without having to follow testing or quarantine requirements.
“Fewer countries will have an orange travel advisory, and it will be possible to travel to more places,” Director of the Consular Affairs and Visa Policy Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dirk Jan Nieuwenhuis, said.
