Inbound travelers to Shanghai are required to undergo quarantine for a number of days and have COVID-19 nucleic acid testing, regardless of whether they have been vaccinated or not, according to a source from Shanghai’s health authority who spoke to the Global Times on Wednesday.
The source was responding to a report in the South China Morning Post on Tuesday that said some foreign people who have been injected with COVID-19 vaccines “are being put in hospital…for three or four days upon arrival in China,” citing the Spanish consulate in Shanghai.
According to the source, Shanghai’s present entry policy for vaccinated inbound guests “is the same” as for those who have not been vaccinated.
Shanghai currently handles international and Chinese inbound tourists identically, regardless of whether they have been inoculated with COVID-19 vaccines or not, to prevent potential virus import and transmission, according to the Global Times.
“Although I’m not very clear about the policy details, I’ve never heard that one can be free from nucleic acid tests after being vaccinated,” the insider told the Global Times.
According to the city’s latest COVID-19 prevention and control regulations, beginning May 16, all international arrivals must undergo a 14-day quarantine for observation, followed by a seven-day health monitoring at a community that includes temperature measurements twice a day, according to a notice posted on the Shanghai Municipal Health Commission’s website on May 14.
During quarantine and community health monitoring after entering Shanghai, each arrival should obtain at least six nucleic acid tests, according to the announcement.