As the situation with the COVID-19 pandemic changes, we’ve gotten updates from various sources as to the vaccines, case rates, and more.
Recently, we shared an update on the COVID-19 cases in Central Florida, when a vaccine may be approved for those under 12 years old, and more. Now, we’ve got an update regarding the United States’ COVID-19-related travel restrictions.
According to Reuters, the United States will not be lifting any of its existing travel restrictions at the moment due to concerns over the Delta variant and the rising number of COVID-19 cases in the US.
A White House official told Reuters, “Given where we are today with the Delta variant, the United States will maintain existing travel restrictions at this point…Driven by the Delta variant, cases are rising here at home, particularly among those who are unvaccinated and appear likely continue to increase in the weeks ahead.”
In the United States, the Delta variant accounts for over 80% all sequenced COVID-19 cases in the US as of July 20th. Last week, the CDC shared that the 7-day average of new COVID-19 cases in the US was up 53% over the previous week.
What do the current US travel restrictions provide? Reuters notes that the US presently bars most non-US citizens from entering the US who have, within the last 14 days, been in “the United Kingdom, the 26 Schengen nations in Europe without border controls, Ireland, China, India, South Africa, Iran and Brazil.”
What about the United States’ borders with Canada and Mexico? Reuters shares that last week the U.S. Homeland Security Department stated that the borders with Canada and Mexico will remain closed to non-essential travel until at least August 21st. Note, however, that Canada previously indicated it would allow fully vaccinated American tourists into the country starting August 9th.
Reuters notes that the White House was previously discussing the possibility of requiring COVID-19 vaccines for international visitors, but shares that no decisions have been made on that according to their sources. Keep in mind that there are mandatory COVID-19 testing requirements for nearly all international travelers planning to fly to the US.
If you’re planning to visit the US in the near future from an international location, be sure to see what travel restrictions or rules apply to your situation. You can see more information on the website for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
We’ll continue to keep an eye out for more news and let you know what we find.
Emilie says
Oh man, I’m so sad 😭 We were supposed to leave for Disney World August 3rd, but because I live in Denmark, I will now have to cancel … We are fully vaccinated and our cases are very low here, but we are still under the travel ban. Especially bummed that I won’t get a chance to watch Happily Ever After for the last time 🥺
Jim Anthony says
Fully vaccinated people from Canada can still fly in. Need our friends from America to believe in vaccines, not rhetoric from obscure politicians and dubious news shows. Disney, Orlando, Florida and the U.S. needs international guests to restart the economy.
Ray says
Very strange that because the UK government has lifted the restrictions to allow double vaccinated US citizens to visit the UK without quarantining there is no reciprocal arrangement in place.
We are double vaccinated but not permitted to travel virtually anywhere.
Todd says
Please consider updating photos when doing stories like this as they paint an inaccurate picture for those traveling. The flight from Orlando and the MCO photos have been being used in these stories since early this year and certainly don’t reflect the current volume. I recall these photos from the beginning of the year prior to a trip to WDW in late February and it was nothing like this. Thank you.
Karen says
I feel your pain Emilie. We had to cancel our WDW trip last year 2020, we rebooked for 2021 – we should be there right now! we are all fully vaccinated as well, trying to look on the bright side though, next year several new rides will be open and we will get the 50th Birthday celebrations! 🙂
Hoping for 3rd time lucky but its so hard to get excited when you’ve done the booking twice already.
Good Luck Emilie hope you get to go next year
Jayne says
This is a shame for all the double vaccinated people in the UK. Our government are allowing US citizens that are double vaccinated to visit our country.