Coronavirus: Qatar moves into green category

Qatar has been upgraded from the red to the green category, according to the health ministry’s latest updates to country classifications, which will take effect from Thursday.

The ministry said that its new plan for the smooth running of airports began on February 21 which includes a reevaluation of the epidemiological picture of countries.

Countries are now classed as green, red, or grey, with different requirements for unvaccinated passengers or those without valid proof of Covid vaccination or a recovery certificate.

The ministry reminded that these passengers may be able to travel to Cyprus provided they meet any requirements for testing or self-isolation set out for their country, which can be found here.

Vaccinated passengers or those who have recently recovered from Covid-19 can enter Cyprus without testing or self-isolation, provided they meet the requirements found here.

At the moment, the Green category includes the United Arab Emirates, China (including Hong Kong and Macau), Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar, which was just upgraded from the Red category.

The Red category includes all EU member-states alongside Andorra, Monaco, Vatican City, San Marino, Switzerland, Iceland, Lichtenstein and Norway.

Also in the Red category are Egypt, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Georgia, USA, UK, Japan, Indonesia, Jordan, Israel, Canada, Colombia, Kuwait, Belarus, Lebanon, Bahrain, New Zealand, South Korea, Oman, Ukraine, Uruguay, Peru, Russia, Serbia, and Chile.

Any countries not included in the list above belong in the Grey Category, meaning passengers will need special permission to enter Cyprus.

The health ministry stressed that all passengers, regardless of their country category, including those with valid proof of vaccination, must fill out the Cyprus Flight Pass up to 48 hours before their flight, adding that they might be subjected to random testing on arrival.