Cyprus adopts color-coding for March opening of airports to curb COVID-19

Cyprus plans to reopen its airports with a color-coded health risk assessment from March 1, applicable to travelers from its main tourism markets and the European Union, authorities said on Wednesday.

The Mediterranean island has adopted a traffic light system for EU member states and third countries such as Britain, Russia and Israel, among its main feeder markets.

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The transport ministry said it was extending until March 31 the mandatory seven-day quarantine of arrivals from the United Kingdom at a facility under the supervision of health authorities. That practice has been in place for British arrivals since December.

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Adopting a phased-in approach, authorities said all arrivals from March 1-31 from ‘green’ countries would require a free PCR test upon arrival, with the requirement lifted from April 1.

Individuals arriving from ‘amber’ countries need a PCR test 72 hours prior to travel, and those in the red will need a double PCR test, before and upon arrival to the island.

Country coding would be reviewed on a weekly basis.

Tourism earnings represent about 13 percent of Cyprus’s economic output.

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