ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA TRAVEL ADVISORY – February 10, 2021
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, the issuing of monitoring bracelets 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 avoid all non-essential travel at this time.
The protocols implemented are as follows:
- 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 days of their flight. (This includes transiting passengers). All passengers are subject to quarantine as determined by the Quarantine Authority.
- All returning residents will be subject to quarantine at a public facility for a period of fourteen days and for a fee not exceeding EC$80.00 per day.
- Arriving passengers that are allowed to stay in their private homes or a government quarantined facility will be required to wear a monitoring bracelet according to the quarantine authority regulations.
- Passengers who knowingly present false declarations of Covid-19 certificates on arrival will be fined according to the laws of Antigua and Barbuda.
- Children below the age of 12 years, entering Antigua, DO NOT REQUIRE a COVID -19 RT-PCR test.
- 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.
- Passengers arriving for medical treatment/procedures must have a negative COVID-19 RT-PCR taken within seventy-two hours of their flight. They also must
comply with Ministry of Health Guidelines for the Transfer of Patients into
Antigua and Barbuda, to include:
- 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.
- A medical report detailing patient’s condition, treatment required and the urgency of the situation.
- 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.
- The intended address in Antigua and Barbuda, together with the name and telephone number of a contact person if available.
- Passengers arriving by sea (private yachts/Ferry Services) are subject to quarantine according to guidelines issued by Port Health.
- The wearing of face mask in public spaces is mandatory throughout Antigua and Barbuda and social/physical distancing protocols must be adhered to. Therefore, all passengers arriving in Antigua and Barbuda must wear a face mask on disembarkation, while on the airport compound and in all public places.
- 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.
- Arriving passengers with symptoms of COVID 19 may be isolated as determined by the Health Authorities.
- Transiting passengers/Crew members who require an overnight stay will be required to proceed to a hotel or government designated facility to await departure.
- 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 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.
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This is no more effective than the protocols already in place. The border must be closed and a serious lockdown for a month. The R number is increasing, 1 Covid patient, on average, passes it on to 3 others without proper care. This is tough but if Antigua allows the yachties, tourists, and English Harbour, Falmouth residents to run around together as if there is no problem then it will be hell for PROPER ANTIGUANS. The white residents and tourists will leave in April/May for other countries and poor Antiguans will suffer because there was no lockdown.
Jolly Harbour is also a littered with Covid cases. All places of business that operate in these areas should be regularly checked to ensure that employees and employers are following the necessary protocols. If not, on the spot fines by the authorities and shut the business down for repeated offences.
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