Authorities in South Korea will officially lift the requirement to undergo a pre-departure COVID-19 testing process for international travelers.
Such a decision was confirmed by the country’s government when it announced that the new rules would take effect on September 3, VisaGuide.World reports.
Still, they are obliged to take a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test within the first 24 hours of their arrival in South Korea, based on a report provided by Yonhap News Agency.
The new rules have been considered minimum measures introduced to prevent an increase in the number of COVID-19 cases.
According to the figures provided by the World Health Organization (WHO), the Republic of Korea has registered a total of 23,246,398 cases of COVID-19 infection since the start of the pandemic, while a total of 26,746 people have died during the same period.
The statistics published by WHO also show that in the last 24 hours, a total of 103,919 have tested positive for the Coronavirus in this country.
The same source confirms that as of July 21, a total of 128,050,297 vaccine doses against Coronavirus have been administered in South Korea.
Authorities in South Korea lifted the majority of COVID-related restrictions in May; however, they kept in place several strict border measures, among them the requirement to present a negative result of the Coronavirus test taken before departure.
However, the recent changes are expected to further facilitate the travel process for international visitors.
“All inbound travelers, whether our nationals or foreigners, arriving aboard a plane or ship will not need to hand in a negative PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test starting midnight of September 3,” Second Vice Health Minister Lee Ki-il pointed out in this regard.
According to the Yonhap News Agency, the new rules come after the government believes the recent virus wave has passed its peak while the country could see a decline in the number of infection cases with the Omicron variant.
Japan and South Korea are among the few countries that still maintain pre-arrival COVID-19 testing requirements for incoming travelers.
Recently, authorities in Japan announced that they would abolish the pre-departure testing requirement for all persons who have completed their immunization process against the Coronavirus starting from September 7.
The decision was confirmed by Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, while he stressed that the country would continue to ease the border control measures introduced due to the virus to permit smooth entry into Japan, following G-7 countries’ example.