Portugal imposes travel restrictions on countries most affected by COVID-19

Countries like India, Cyprus, Croatia, Brazil, France, Lithuania, the Netherlands, South Africa, and Sweden are included in this category.

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Lisbon: The Portuguese Government on Saturday (May 1) extended travel restrictions to and from countries most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic until May 16.

According to the Ministry of Internal Administration, for travellers to and from countries with a COVID-19 incidence rate equal to or greater than 500 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, only flights considered essential are allowed, for example, for professional, study, family reunion, health and humanitarian reasons.

Countries like Cyprus, Croatia, Brazil, India, France, Lithuania, the Netherlands, South Africa, and Sweden are included in this category, and travellers from these countries have to undergo 14 days of quarantine after arrival.

For countries with an incidence rate equal to or greater than 150 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, people may travel to Portugal for essential journeys, but they don`t need to do quarantine.

Any traveller who arrives in Portugal by air, except for children under 2 years of age, must present a negative COVID-19 PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test performed within 72 hours prior to departure, according to the ministry.

The extension of travel restrictions came a day after Portugal ended the "state of emergency," with the reopening of land borders with Spain and the expansion of the service hours of shops and restaurants.

The "state of emergency," which has been in force since November 9, 2020, is the highest level of civil protection in the country. It has been renewed 15 times to contain the spread of the coronavirus in Portugal.