TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Taiwan is considering ending its quarantine requirement for all arrivals by mid-October, the Central Epidemic Command Center said Thursday.
The island is one of the few places in the world that has maintained a quarantine for all arrivals during the pandemic. In recent months, it has steadily reduced the previously 2-week-long quarantine.
CECC officials in charge of the pandemic response announced that they plan to end the quarantine and change it to a seven-day self-health monitoring. However, the change is dependent on the epidemic situation in Taiwan in the coming weeks.
The quarantine is expected to end on October 13.
Taiwan has announced that starting September 12, countries from Canada, the United States and Europe that previously had visa-free entry will again be able to visit Taiwan without a visa.
Under the new scheme, arrivals will still have to stay in places with a separate bathroom per person and will be screened quickly on arrival.
Currently, arrivals are allowed to quarantine at home and must do so for three days starting from the day of their arrival. They must then follow four days of self-health management, which means they must continue to monitor their temperature and not visit restaurants.
Elsewhere, local media also reported that Hong Kong plans to end mandatory hotel quarantines for arrivals in October, although authorities have yet to officially announce such measures.
The city, which once had one of the world’s longest quarantines at 21 days, has relaxed its measures And currently passengers have to stay in hotel isolation for three days. Hong Kong leader John Lee has repeatedly stressed the need to balance the spread of COVID-19 with minimizing travel difficulties.
China, which has different quarantine requirements than Hong Kong, still requires a 10-day quarantine on arrival.
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AP video journalist Johnson Lai in Taipei and AP writer Jane Su in Hong Kong contributed to this report.
