File photo. Farooq Naeem—AFP
CAA revises list of countries that require special permission from Government of Pakistan prior to entry
Pakistan’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) on Monday revised a list of countries from which inbound travelers require special government permission prior to entry in a bid to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.
According to a new advisory, the CAA has added nine countries to category-C, or countries from which all travel is restricted and only permitted with special government permission in accordance with guidelines issued by the National Command and Operation Center. With the new additions, the list of category C countries has now increased to 15 and comprises South Africa, the U.K., Brazil, Ireland, Portugal, Netherlands, Peru, Tanzania, Botswana, Columbia, Comoros, Ghana, Kenya, Zambia, and Mozambique.
The CAA has stressed that these restrictions would continue until March 14, after which they might be extended or removed in light of prevailing conditions.
Meanwhile, the CAA also reduced the number of countries categorized as ‘A’ from 24 to 21. Travelers from these countries—Australia, Bhutan, China, Fiji, Japan, Kazakhstan, Laos, Mongolia, Mauritania, Morocco, Myanmar, Nepal, New Zealand, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Trinidad and Tobago, and Vietnam—do not require any COVID-19 test prior to entry into Pakistan.
All countries not listed under either category A or C are automatically designated as B. Inbound travelers from such countries require a negative PCR test secured no earlier than 72 hours prior to the commencement of their journey to Pakistan.
Pakistan last week announced it was ending, from March 15, virtually all restrictions imposed to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus, including allowing indoor dining and wedding receptions. Authorities have warned, however, that this decision could be reversed if the situation deteriorates once more.