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A reduction in coronavirus infections has reduced the state to the safest classification of “orange” from “red” under the EU traffic light system for international travel.
The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control changed Ireland’s color status to “orange” on Thursday after its weekly update of data on infection rates in Europe.
Ireland, like most of the rest of the EU, was in the highest restricted travel status, but a reduction in the incidence rate during Level 5 restrictions has moved it to the lowest level.
The Government continues to advise against all non-essential foreign travel, regardless of the color applied to the State in the EU travel system, which is based on the level of cases.
The Department of Foreign Affairs advises the Irish to “exercise a high degree of caution” when traveling to EU color-coded countries and generally to “avoid non-essential travel.”
The color has no impact on the rules related to travel to Ireland, you only travel from Ireland.
Travelers arriving from “orange” countries should face less stringent measures under the traffic light system. However, the restrictions will vary from country to country, as each state can adopt its own rules under the system for people arriving from other countries.
For travelers arriving in Ireland, people from the ‘orange’ regions do not have to restrict their movements for 14 days if they have a negative Covid-19 test three days prior to arrival.
Starting November 29, passengers from the “red” regions can shorten their 14-day quarantine period if they test negative for the virus after five days of arriving in the state.
The tests should be the PCR test (polymerase chain reaction), the most widely used diagnostic test to detect the virus.
Most other countries have not applied these rules.
Regions ‘orange’
Ireland joins the Canary Islands, Iceland, Finland and parts of Norway and Greece as the only “orange” regions. Greenland and a region of Finland are the only areas classified as “green”.
“Going orange is not particularly relevant for inbound tourism because it affects outbound travelers from Ireland,” said Eoghan O’Mara Walsh, executive director of the Irish Tourism Industry Confederation.
“What we would like to see is some of our source markets in the rest of Europe going orange and green.”
A region is classified as “orange” if the 14-day incidence rate is less than 50 cases per 100,000 but the test positivity rate is 4% or if the 14-day incidence rate is between 25 and 150 cases per 100,000 and the test positivity rate is less than 4 percent.
Ireland’s incidence rate fell to 120 cases per 100,000 this week with a test positivity rate of 3.8 percent, up from 250 cases per 100,000 with a 7 percent positivity rate a month ago.
A region is “green” if the 14-day notification rate is less than 25 cases per 100,000 and the positivity rate is less than 4%. Ireland was the last at this level in mid-September.
A region is “red” if the 14-day incidence rate is 50 cases per 100,000 or more and the positivity rate is 4% or more, or if the 14-day notification rate is greater than 150 cases per 100,000.
Regions are graded “gray” if there is insufficient information or if the testing rate is less than 300 cases per 100,000. Northern Ireland is classified as “gray” by the ECDC.
As of November 23, all travelers arriving in Spain from “red” or “gray” regions must have a negative PCR test, taken no more than 72 hours before arrival.
A person who called RTÉ’s Liveline on Thursday, who was traveling to Spain on business, said he saw a group of about 50 people, dressed as if they were going to a wedding, without masks or social distancing on their busy Ryanair flight and without adhere to the flight. crew instructions to sit.
“It was chaos, everything. They would not wear masks and they had brought alcohol on the plane. It was horrible, ”he told the radio show.
He described it as “like a flight from hell”.
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