The Government of Antigua and Barbuda has updated its travel advisory effective immediately to ensure the continued safety of travelers and residents. The V.C. Bird International Airport is open for international and regional air traffic. The Antigua Port Authority is open to Cargo Vessels, Pleasure Craft and Ferry Services which are required to follow all protocols issued by Port Health.
The State continues to carry out a combination of screening, testing, monitoring and other measures to mitigate the risk of importing any new cases of COVID-19 into the country.
Additionally, measures have been implemented for the quick detection of any imported cases. This strategy is intended to protect and safeguard the health of both residents and visitors to Antigua and Barbuda.
Nationals and residents of Antigua and Barbuda are strongly advised to restrict their travel to countries with significant escalations in the number of persons recently testing positive for COVID-19 to that for essential purposes only.
The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) has provided parameters for the establishment of a regional Travel Bubble among the OECS countries of Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, Dominica, St. Lucia, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Montserrat, Anguilla and British Virgin Islands, together with Barbados. This is designed to facilitate intra-regional travel of nationals, movement of essential workers, and inter-regional travel of visitors to the region while ensuring that the necessary health protocols are followed.
The protocols implemented are as follows:
1. All arriving passengers by air must have a negative COVID-19 RT-PCR (real time polymerase chain reaction) test for SARS-CoV-2 using a nasopharyngeal or oropharyngeal swab taken within seven (7) days of their flight. (This includes transiting passengers).
2. All arriving passengers will be subject to fourteen (14) days mandatory quarantine.
3. Children below the age of 12 years, entering Antigua, DO NOT REQUIRE a COVID -19 RT-PCR test.
4. Persons traveling to Antigua and Barbuda from countries within the established Travel Bubble must have resided there for no less than fourteen (14) consecutive days prior to travel. They are required to have a negative COVID 19 RT-PCR test result taken within seven (7) days of their flight. They will undergo mandatory health screening upon arrival but will not be subject to quarantine. All other arriving passengers are subject to quarantine as determined by the Quarantine Authority.
5. Passengers arriving for medical treatment/procedures must have a negative COVID-19 RT-PCR taken within seven (7) days of their flight. They also must comply with Ministry of Health Guidelines for the Transfer of Patients into Antigua and Barbuda, to include:
a) A letter of Request for Medical Transfer from the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of the originating country to the CMO of Antigua and Barbuda who is also the Quarantine Authority.
b) A medical report detailing patient’s condition, treatment required and the urgency of the situation.
c) A Letter of Acceptance from the receiving institution stating that the patient has been accepted for care, together with the name of the physician who will be managing the patient.
d) The intended address in Antigua and Barbuda, together with the name and telephone number of a contact person if available.
6. Passengers arriving by sea (private yachts/Ferry Services) are subject to quarantine according to guidelines issued by Port Health except those arriving from countries within the bubble.
7. All arriving passengers must wear a face mask on disembarkation and in all public areas. Additionally, the wearing of face mask in public spaces is mandatory throughout Antigua and Barbuda and social/physical distancing protocols must be adhered to.
8. All arriving passengers must complete a Health Declaration Form and will be subjected to screening and temperature checks by Port Health Authorities upon arrival in Antigua and Barbuda.
9. Persons travelling from countries within the travel bubble will be exempted from quarantine, however, all other arriving passengers will be quarantined for periods of up to
14 days in accordance with the directions of the Quarantine Authority and the Quarantine (COVID-19) Guidelines. Visitors may be required to undergo testing for COVID-19 on arrival or at the hotel or place of lodging as determined by the Health Authorities.
10. Arriving passengers with symptoms of COVID 19 may be isolated as determined by the Health Authorities.
11. Transiting passengers/Crew members who require an overnight stay will be required to proceed to a hotel or government designated facility to await departure.
12. All Marine Pleasure Craft and Ferry Services entering the waters of Antigua and Barbuda should contact the Antigua Port Authority, using VHF Channel 16, at least six (6) hours prior to arrival.
Instructions will be given to guide the crafts to either the Nevis Street Pier or English Harbour Ports or to a holding area.
Military Vessels/Aircraft and other Watercraft transporting food, medical supplies, humanitarian and emergency supplies will be required to follow the Quarantine Guidelines established by the Quarantine Authority as well as issued by Port Health and must give prior notification before arrival.
These restrictions for maritime traffic, and the consequential Antigua Port Authority guidelines, issued during the State of Emergency, shall not restrict vessels engaged in innocent passage and/or transit passage, within the territorial seas and/or archipelagic waters of Antigua and Barbuda, under the 1982 United Nations Convention on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
This Travel Advisory replaces ALL previous Travel Advisories issued by the Government of Antigua and Barbuda.
