Blog

December 4, 2021

Per the Presidential Proclamation of October 25, all the earlier regional travel/entry bans based on COVID-19 were rescinded for air travel to the United States as of November 8, 2021, allowing fully vaccinated travelers to enter as nonimmigrants (i.e. temporary travel).

Similarly, non-essential travel at land borders and ferry ports resumed for fully vaccinated travelers as of November 8. Essential travel at land borders and ferry ports for the unvaccinated may continue until January 21, 2022, at which time those travelers also will be subject to the vaccination requirement.

  • Who is “fully vaccinated?”
    Per the proclamation of October 25, travelers must have received a COVID-19 vaccine approved or authorized by the FDA or the World Health Organization. At present, this includes Janssen/Johnson & Johnson (single dose); Pfizer-BioNtech, Moderna, AstraZeneca, Covishield, BIBP/SinoPharm, or Sinovac.2
    You are deemed “fully vaccinated” two weeks after receiving the second of a multi-dose vaccine or the first of a single-dose vaccine.

  • What proof is required?
    Before boarding, you must present to the airline one of the following:
  • Verifiable digital or paper record, such as vaccination certificates or digital passes with a QR code, such as the UK NHS COVID Pass, & the EU Digital COVID Certificate;
  • Non-verifiable paper vaccination card or certificate issued by a national or subnational agency or authorized vaccine provider (such as a CDC vaccination card);
  • Non-verifiable digital photo of vaccination card or downloaded vaccination certificate from an official source such as a government agency.


Airlines will check that the name and birthdate on your proof of vaccination match the name and birthdate on your passport and other travel documents, is from an official source in the country where you were vaccinated, and shows full vaccination. Confirm in advance of travel with your airline whether they will require translations of documents not in English.

Exemptions –

  • Who is not required to show proof of vaccination to board flights to the US?
  • US citizens & US nationals
  • Lawful Permanent Residents (green card holders)
  • Children under 18
  • Past or current participants in CDC-approved clinical trials
  • Those for whom vaccination is medically contraindicated as determined by a licensed physician
  • Those granted humanitarian/emergency exceptions by Director of the CDC
  • Citizens of countries where <10% of the population is vaccinated, and who are traveling with a valid U.S. visa (not including B-1/B-2 visitors)
  • Members of the US armed forces and their spouses and children
  • Those whose entry would be in the national interest, as determined by the Secretaries of State, Transportation & Homeland Security or designees
  • Diplomats and nonimmigrants on official government travel (A, G & NATO visas)
  • Individuals invited by the United Nations
  • Sea crew members (C-1 & D)
  • Airline crew members
  • Is a negative COVID test required?    YES
    All travelers over the age of two, whether vaccinated or not, must present proof of a negative COVID-19 test prior to boarding a flight bound for the United States.

**As of December 6, 2021, in response to the Omicron variant, the United States requires all inbound air travelers age 2 & up to submit the result of a negative COVID test taken within 1 calendar day of departure in order to board their flights, without regard to citizenship or vaccination status. This REPLACES the prior policy that allowed fully vaccinated passengers to submit evidence of a negative COVID test taken within 3 days of travel.

Passengers who recovered from COVID-19 within the past 90 days will still be able to submit proof of recovery from a licensed physician or public health official.

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