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Brian Cohen·
2019 Novel Coronavirus
··12 min read

Latest Travel Advisory April 7 2020 From the Department of State of the United States

A revision to this Level 4 travel advisory during the current 2019 Novel Coronavirus pandemic was officially issued by the Bureau of Consular Affairs of the Department of State of the United States yesterday, Tuesday, April 7, 2020.

Latest Travel Advisory April 7 2020 From the Department of State of the United States

The original official announcement was released on Sunday, March 22, 2020 — and included in that announcement is this list of links to the official Internet web sites of embassies which have posted information with regard to their respective countries and territories, which can easily be filtered by entering text.

The announcement has since been amended with additional important information — including for citizens of the United States who are returning from Europe and China, passengers of cruise ships, and students who are currently outside of the United States; as well as updated links to other official Internet web sites of the Department of State which contain important information and details that are pertinent to travel during the current 2019 Novel Coronavirus pandemic.

The following text is repeated verbatim from the official revised advisory.

At present the Department of State is making every effort to assist U.S. citizens overseas who wish to return to the United States.  If you wish to return to the United States, you should make arrangements to do so now. In countries where commercial departure options remain available, U.S. citizens should arrange for immediate return to the United States by commercial carrier, unless they are prepared to remain abroad for an indefinite period.

For additional information, see our Frequently Asked Questions, The Global Level 4 Health Advisory, and What the Department of State Can and Can’t Do in a Crisis, and Global Advisory.

Information for Travelers Returning to the United States:

U.S. Citizens Returning from Europe

U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents will be permitted to return from the United Kingdom, Ireland, and the European Schengen area. The Department of Homeland Security has issued instructions requiring U.S. passengers that have been in the United Kingdom, Ireland and the Schengen area to travel through select airports where the U.S. Government has implemented enhanced screening procedures. See the our FAQs on the Presidential Proclamation on travel from Europe and  DHS website for further details.

The Schengen area encompasses the following 26 European countries: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.

Please see our U.S. Travelers in Europe page for additional information on travel from the Schengen area.

U.S. Citizens Returning from China

Any U.S. citizen returning to the United States who has been in China in the previous 14 days may be subject to up to 14 days of quarantine.

Please read these Department of Homeland Security supplemental instructions for further details.

Cruise Ship Passengers

U.S. citizens, particularly travelers with underlying health conditions, should not travel by cruise ship at this time. CDC notes increased risk of infection of COVID-19 in a cruise ship environment. In order to curb the spread of COVID-19, many countries have implemented strict screening procedures that have denied port entry rights to ships and prevented passengers from disembarking. In some cases, local authorities have permitted disembarkation but subjected passengers to local quarantine procedures.

While the U.S. government has evacuated some cruise ship passengers in recent weeks, repatriation flights should not be relied upon as an option for U.S. citizens under the potential risk of quarantine by local authorities. Cruise passengers should stay home for 14 days after returning from travel, monitor their health, and practice social distancing.

CDC notes that older adults and travelers with underlying health issues should avoid situations that put them at increased risk for more severe disease. This entails avoiding crowded places, avoiding non-essential travel such as long plane trips, and especially avoiding embarking on cruise ships. Passengers with plans to travel by cruise ship should contact their cruise line companies directly for further information and continue to monitor the Travel.state.gov website and see the latest information from the CDC.

U.S. Students Abroad

American students overseas should return to the United States as soon as possible. Students abroad may face unpredictable circumstances, quarantine, and sudden travel restrictions. Adequate health care may not be available overseas.

See also

The CDC recommends institutes of higher education (IHE) consider postponing or canceling upcoming student foreign exchange programs. In addition, CDC recommends IHE consider asking current program participants to return to their home country.

Contact Information

Whether you are experiencing an emergency overseas which involves the current 2019 Novel Coronavirus pandemic — or you have questions pertaining to assistance to depart an international location to return to the United States — contact the nearest United States embassy or consulate, or call the assistance call center:

Summary

At the time this article was written, at least 79,235 people — or slightly greater than 5.85 percent — have died of the minimum of 1,353,361 confirmed cases worldwide, according to this situation dashboard from the World Health Organization pertaining to the 2019 Novel Coronavirus.

A Level 4 advisory means to restrict travel — which is the highest level that warns Do Not Travel. The Department of State of the United States introduced an improved travel advisory system of sharing information on Wednesday, January 10, 2018 for travelers who are citizens of the United States — and this system is designed to provide clear, timely, and reliable safety and security information worldwide.

Even if you were to travel, numerous countries have either strengthened restrictions for entry to foreigners and visitors — or the borders are simply closed off altogether — which has led to airlines substantially diminishing their route networks by reducing or eliminating flight schedules.

This article is the latest in a series pertaining to the 2019 Novel Coronavirus — which is also known as COVID-19 or 2019-nCoV or SARS-CoV-2 — pandemic in an effort to get the facts out with information derived from reliable sources…

…as well as attempt to maintain a reasoned and sensible ongoing discussion towards how to resolve this pandemic.

Other articles at The Gate which pertain to the 2019 Novel Coronavirus include:

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