Do I need a PRC test after vaccination to travel to Uganda?

Do I need a PRC test after vaccination to travel to Uganda? : The Government of Uganda under the Ministry of Health (MOH) passed a statement to Uganda Civil Aviation Authority to all travellers to Uganda after an outbreak of the Indian variant of Covid 19 in Uganda weeks before. With reference to the press statement of 5th/May/2021 by the Honourable Minister of Health, below are the following directives that must be implicated as for arrivals at Entebbe international airports and any other borders of Uganda with other bordering countries. In Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng Ocero’s press statement, there are 3 categories of arriving passengers from Category 1 and 2 that will be subjected to a PCR  Covid 19 test at all points of Entry including Entebbe international airport;

Category 1: INDIA.

Category 2: UNITED KINGDOM, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES, ETHIOPIA, KENYA, SOUTH AFRICA, SOUTH SUDAN, TANZANIA, AND TURKEY

Category 3: ALL COUNTRIES NOT MENTIONED IN CATEGORY 1 AND 2 – THESE WILL NOT BE SUBJECTED TO PCR TESTS UPON ARRIVAL AT ANY OF THE ENTRY POINTS

All travellers’ that include non-Ugandans and non-resident foreigners from the Category 2 countries of USA, UK, UAE, Turkey, South Africa, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Kenya, and Tanzania who are not vaccinated are recommended not to travel to Uganda at this time. Therefore, the Government of Uganda strongly recommends that non-Ugandans and non-resident foreigners from the Category 2 countries who are not vaccinated do not travel to Uganda at this time.

Only travellers’ belonging to Category 2 countries who have received full COVID 19 vaccination and have no signs of COVID 19 will be allowed to enter Uganda and also will be exempted from the PCR test upon arrival at any point of Entry including Entebbe international airport. Individuals who have received a full COVID-19 vaccination and are asymptomatic will be allowed into Uganda without the need for testing on arrival.  Such travellers will need to show evidence of their vaccination.

Do I need a PRC test after vaccination to travel to Uganda?

A PCR COVID-19 test will be required upon arrival for any traveller arriving from a Category 2 country (USA, UK, UAE, Turkey, South Africa, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Kenya, and Tanzania).  The traveller must pay for the test and wait for negative results before proceeding to their final destination in Uganda.

Any traveller from the Category 2 countries, including the United States (as well as United Kingdom, UAE, Turkey, South Africa, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Kenya, and Tanzania), will be subjected to a PCR COVID-19 test, at the traveller’s own expense, at all points of entry into Uganda, including Entebbe International Airport. The Ministry of Health has stated that these tests should not cost more than USD 65.

These travellers will be transported to a holding area 5-10 km from the airport to be tested and to wait there for their test results.  Travelers have an option to wait at that location or to check into a designated hotel at their own cost until they receive their test results.  Any traveler who tests positive for COVID-19 will be evacuated by the Ministry of Health to a designated COVID-19 isolation facility, at the traveller’s expense.

Note that all travellers regardless of nationality and originating from, or transiting through, India which is the current only Category 1 country, are currently banned from entering Uganda, regardless of the route of travel.  Any traveller who was present in, or travelled through, India in the 14 days preceding their arrival in Uganda will not be allowed entry.

All travellers from Category 1 and Category 2 countries will be tested, including children. Any child who tests positive for COVID-19 will also be evacuated to a designated COVID-19 isolation facility with their parent or guardian.

Travelers from any country trying to enter Uganda must have a negative PCR COVID-19 test taken no more than 120 hours before boarding aircraft in-bound to Uganda. The Ministry of Health instituted this requirement in November 2020 and it remains in place.

The Government of Uganda requires that all departing passengers present a negative PCR COVID-19 test taken not more than 120 hours before departure. This requirement is mandatory for all departing passengers out of Uganda even if the destination country does not require it.  COVID-19 tests for departing passengers must be taken at an accredited laboratory or a COVID-19 sample collection point approved by the Ministry of Health.

A full list of approved testing facilities can be found on the website of the Ministry if Health.  Travelers are expected to cover all costs associated with their COVID-19 test and test results must indicate that they are for the express purpose of travel with the annotation “TRAVEL” clearly marked.

Out-bound travelers should review and comply with the testing requirements for transit and destination countries. For example: the United States requires a test be done within three calendar days of departure for those in-bound to the United States.

Any arriving passengers who exhibit signs or symptoms of an infectious disease will be transported to an isolation center for a COVID-19 test where they must remain, at their own cost, until the results of the test are received. Travelers who test positive will be taken to a Ministry of Health facility for treatment or will be given the option to be repatriated (for foreigners) at their own cost.

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