Saudi Arabia also lifts quarantine requirement for COVID-19 vaccinated foreign visitors and adds new procedures for the arrival of unvaccinated travellers
The civil aviation authority of Saudi Arabia said that from 20th May 2021, anyone over the age of eight years old who is not vaccinated must quarantine on arrival in Saudi Arabia for seven days at their own expense.
They must provide a valid health insurance policy to cover potential risks from COVID-19. They will also need to provide a negative PCR test taken no later than 72 hours before boarding their flight to Saudi Arabia.
Madinah, Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam are the only first point of entry for passengers undergoing institutional quarantine.
Eligible non-Saudi visitors arriving in the country by air who are fully/partially vaccinated 14 days before travel, or have had COVID-19 and recovered within the last 6 months will not have to spend seven days in government-approved hotels as long as they provide an official vaccination certificate before and upon arrival. Passengers are urged to carry their vaccination certificate at all times during their stay in Saudi Arabia
The quarantine exemption applies to vaccinated individuals who have received vaccines of the following types:
- Two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine
- Two doses of the Oxford-Astrazeneca vaccine
- Two doses of Moderna vaccine
- One dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine
The duration between receiving the last dose (for the second dose of a two-dose vaccine or the first dose of a single-dose vaccine) and the departure date shall not be less than 14 days.
Immune passengers, Saudi citizens non-immune domestic workers accompanying them, diplomats and their residing families are exempted from institutional quarantine.
These individuals will be allowed to complete a 7 day home quarantine and will undergo a COVID-19 test on the sixth day of their home quarantine.
The new procedure will take effect from 20th May 2021.
Anyone found in violation of these rules will be deported and banned from entry in Saudi Arabia.
In February this year, the kingdom suspended entry from 20 countries, except diplomats, Saudi citizens, medical practitioners and their families, to help curb the spread of the coronavirus.
Visitors from those countries remain banned from entering Saudi Arabia under the new rules.
Saudi Travellers need to carry a smart phone while travelling and need to Download Tawakkalna App before travelling to Saudi Arabia. Non-Saudi passengers will have to register their immunization data in “Vaccination Registration” website.
