China halved quarantine period for overseas travelers

China on Tuesday shortened the length of mandatory quarantine for inbound travelers, in the biggest easing of entry restrictions, after sticking to a strict zero-Covid policy throughout the pandemic.

The new guideline shortens the duration of the mandatory quarantine for overseer travelers to seven days plus three more days of home monitoring – a drastic decline of around 21 days quarantine and home monitoring.

China closed its international borders in March 2020 and international flights are still severely restricted to curb “imported” virus cases while the pandemic rages elsewhere.

Since then, overseas arrivals have had to be closely monitored for weeks and placed in costly quarantines in hotels and designated centers.

According to the latest Covid prevention and control guidelines announced by the National Health Commission and the State Council, those entering China now only need to undergo central quarantine for seven days.

Since April, a growing number of “pilot” cities have already reduced mandatory centralized quarantine for overseas travelers to 10 days, with Beijing also reducing quarantine last month.

However, tight international flights are often canceled as Beijing operates a “circuit breaker” scheme, under which routes are temporarily canceled if enough positive passengers are spotted on board.

China’s steadfast adherence to its zero-Covid policy differs from the rest of the world, which has largely lifted most restrictions despite the proliferation of the highly infectious but less life-threatening Omicron variant.

Earlier this month, China eased visa restrictions slightly to allow foreigners to visit direct family members and foreign permanent residents in China.

China’s aviation regulator officials said at a briefing on Friday that they are negotiating with more countries to gradually increase the number of flights to China.

In recent weeks, international students from several countries including India and Pakistan have been allowed to return to China for the first time since the pandemic.

However, most analysts believe the resumption of inbound tourism is a long way off.

A twice-in-a-decade Communist Party congress to announce the new top leadership is slated for the fall, when authorities will strive to quell any renewed domestic outbreaks.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has repeatedly stressed the validity of zero-Covid, despite the rising costs of China’s sluggish economy.

He vowed in May to “fight against any speech that distorts, challenges or rejects” China’s Covid control policy.

China has also severely curtailed the international travel of its own citizens, who have been banned from “non-urgent, unnecessary” travel since late 2021, with most passport renewals all but halted.

Under the latest guidelines, the quarantine requirement has also been cut for people identified as close contacts of people infected in outbreaks in China.