The new Action Plan for the smooth operation and operation of Airports, which was approved by the Council of Ministers on January 1, 2022, will be fully implemented from tomorrow, March 19, 2022.
The new Action Plan envisages the following:
A. Categorization of countries:
The categorization of countries based on their epidemiological risk is different and includes three categories with the following color code: Green, Red and Gray Category. It is clarified that, according to the new Action Plan, the Green and Orange categories of the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) correspond to the Green Category of the Republic of Cyprus, while the Red and Deep Red categories correspond to the Red Category of the Republic.
B. Vaccinated or Recovered passengers:
1) Vaccinated or Recovered passengers, regardless of nationality and country of departure, are exempted from the obligation to meet the requirements of the respective category (eg presentation of a negative laboratory test result, obligation for self-limitation / quarantine, issuance of a special permit, etc.) the country from which they travel has been categorized. Vaccinated or recovering passengers may enter the Republic of Cyprus, provided they meet one of the following conditions:
i. They hold a valid vaccination certificate from the competent authorities of any third country.
ii. They hold a certificate of recovery issued by a third country included in the list of third countries that have joined the EU COVID Digital Certificate System (EUDCC).
iii. They hold a European or equivalent from third countries Digital Certificate of Vaccination or Recovery COVID.
2) The vaccination or recovery certificate will be considered acceptable only if all of the following conditions apply:
- It has been issued by the public authorities of the states,
- The vaccine is one of: Johnson & Johnson / Janssen, AstraZeneca, (Vaxzervia, COVISHIELD, SKBio), Pfizer / BioNTech, Moderna, Sputnik V (Gam-COVID-Vac), Sinopharm (BBIBPCOVID-19), Sinovac (CoronaVac), Covaxin, Sputnik Light (as a booster dose only) and Novavax Nuvaxovid COVID-19.
- Passengers 18 years of age and older: For travel purposes, the passenger must also have received the 3rd booster dose in case of a two-dose vaccine or the 2nd dose in case of a single-dose vaccine, one of the above vaccines. Vaccination certificates for passengers who have received two doses of a single-dose vaccine or one dose of a single-dose vaccine will only be accepted if a period of 9 months has not elapsed since the date of the 2nd dose in the case of a double-dose vaccine or a single dose in the case of a single-dose vaccine.
- Passengers 18 years of age and younger: For travel purposes, the passenger is considered to have completed his / her vaccination schedule if he / she has received the 2nd dose in case of a two-dose vaccine or the one dose in case of a single-dose vaccine.
- The time frame for travel purposes set by the Ministry of Health and posted on the CyprusFlightPass platform for each vaccine has expired.
- In the case of a certificate of recovery, the travel date does not exceed 180 days from the first positive result.
C. Passengers who have not been vaccinated or who do not hold a valid vaccination or recovery certificate:
1) Passengers who have not been vaccinated or do not hold a valid vaccination or recovery certificate, regardless of nationality, may enter the Republic of Cyprus from any country of departure, only if they meet the conditions (eg production of a negative laboratory test result, obligation / quarantine, issuance of special permit, etc) of the respective category, in which the state from which they travel has been categorized.
2) Green Category: Passengers who have not been vaccinated or do not have a valid vaccination or recovery certificate, aged 12 and over, wishing to travel to the Republic of Cyprus from a Green Category country are required to undergo a PCR laboratory examination valid for 72 hours before departure or rapid antigen test valid for 24 hours prior to departure.
3) Red Class: Passengers who have not been vaccinated or do not hold a valid vaccination or recovery certificate, aged 12 and over, wishing to travel to the Republic of Cyprus from a Red Class country are required to:
- perform a PCR laboratory test valid for 72 hours prior to departure or a rapid antigen test validated 24 hours prior to departure, and
- undergo a PCR diagnostic test upon arrival at the Airports of the Republic of Cyprus. The cost of the examination is borne by the passenger.
4) Gray Category (Special Permission): From the Gray Category (Special Permission) countries, the following are allowed to enter the Republic of Cyprus only in the following categories of passengers:
- Cypriot citizens and members of their families (their foreign spouses and minor children).
- Persons legally residing in the Republic.
- Persons entitled to enter the Republic under the Vienna Convention.
- European citizens, citizens of the European Economic Area (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway) and Switzerland.
- Third-country nationals eligible to enter the Republic of Cyprus, after special permission on the CyprusFlightPass online platform (https://cyprusflightpass.gov.cy/el/special-permission-request) granted by the Republic of Cyprus, as defined in in force on Infectious Diseases (Definition of Measures to Prevent the Spread of Koroovirus COVID-19) Decree.
Passengers who have not been vaccinated or do not hold a valid vaccination or recovery certificate, aged 12 and over, who are allowed to travel to the Republic of Cyprus from a Gray Category country, are obliged to:
- perform a PCR laboratory test valid for 72 hours before departure or a rapid antigen test valid for 24 hours prior to departure, and undergo a PCR diagnostic test upon arrival at the Airports of the Republic of Cyprus. The cost of the examination shall be borne by the passenger, and
- remain in a compulsory self-restraint regime for 10 days or 7 days, meaning that they will undergo a PCR examination on the 7th day with a negative result at their own expense.
- Regarding passengers who have not been vaccinated or do not hold a valid vaccination or recovery certificate and belong to the cases of domestic workers or any other persons who have obtained prior permission to work in the Republic from the competent Ministries and Departments, as well as in the cases of employees in the field of agriculture / livestock, the previous decision of the Council of Ministers regarding the obligation of prepayment and quarantine in tourist accommodation in the Republic of Cyprus ceases to apply. It is understood, however, that the corresponding above conditions of the Gray Category also apply to these passengers.
It is understood that, in the event of a sample check on arrival, all passengers, without exception, must comply.
Regarding the categorization of countries in the corresponding category of the electronic platform CyprusFlightPass it is stated that:
1. For the Member States of the European Union, the EEA (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway) and Switzerland, their categorization by the Ministry of Health on the CyprusFlightPass online platform will continue to be based on their categorization by the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control ( ECDC) in the color chart to be compiled and published on a weekly basis by the ECDC.
Regarding the Member States of the European Union, the EEA (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway) and Switzerland which will be included in the gray color of the color chart, which means that the ECDC has not provided sufficient information to these countries and is therefore not If these countries are evaluated by the ECDC, the Ministry of Health will continue to evaluate these countries and decide on their categorization on the CyprusFlightPass online platform.
In any case, the categorization of these states will be from the Green to the Red Category.
2. For the third countries included in the updated list of the Council Recommendation, dated 30.6.2020, as well as for the United Kingdom, Israel, Russia, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Ukraine, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Belarus, Serbia, Qatar, Bahrain, United States of America, Armenia, Georgia, Canada, Kuwait, China (including Hong Kong and Macao), Oman, the Vatican, Monaco, San Marino and Andorra, the weekly evaluation and categorization on the CyprusFlightPass online platform will continue to be carried out by the Ministry of Health.
In any case, these third countries will be categorized by the Ministry of Health, in a similar way to the EU / EEA Member States (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway (European Economic Area) and Switzerland, from the Green to the Red Category.
3. Third countries not listed in paragraph 2 will not be categorized by the Ministry of Health and will be automatically classified in the Gray Category (Special Permission Category).
The possibility of choosing a laboratory test upon arrival in the Republic of Cyprus for Cypriot citizens, including foreign spouses and their minor children, for all persons legally residing in the Republic and for persons entitled to enter the Republic in accordance with the Vienna Convention, ceases to exist.
It is reminded that all passengers without exception are required to complete the CyprusFlightPass, within 48 hours before the start of their trip.