In news that will likely please a lot of Switzerland’s expat community, the Swiss Government has announced that entry requirements for non-Swiss travellers will be relaxed from Saturday, June 26. This includes people travelling from the UK, United States, Canada and a whole host of other countries.
People who have been fully vaccinated against or have recovered from Covid-19 will no longer need to quarantine or take a test when arriving in Switzerland. This even applies to the list of ‘risk countries’ put together by the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH), including areas with a “worrying variant”, such as the UK, Canada, Brazil and India. You’ll still need to leave your contact details with the Swiss authorities, but that seems like a microscopically small inconvenience at this stage.
Anyone who hasn’t been vaccinated or hasn’t recovered from Covid-19 will need to present a negative test and go into quarantine on arrival.
The travel rules have also been relaxed for people from the Schengen Area, who no longer need to quarantine when entering Switzerland.
Just keep in mind that even though you might skip quarantine in Switzerland, you still need to follow the entry/re-entry rules of whatever country you’re flying back to – which could involve a good ol’ fashioned quarantine sesh.
And we should also point out that the advice from some countries is still not to travel abroad unless absolutely necessary. England, for example, still has Switzerland on its ‘Amber list’, with the official government guidance stating that people shouldn’t be going to those countries. Technically, you still can, of course, but you’ll need to follow some fairly strict rules when returning, including booking two Covid tests and quarantining for ten days. Check the latest guidance on the GOV.UK website.
Overall, though, it seems like good news indeed for expats thinking ahead about travel, whether that’s having family and friends visit at some stage or planning your own travel back into Switzerland.
The travel easings are just one part of the Swiss Government’s latest relaxation of coronavirus measures, but before making any foreign travel plans, it’s always best to check the FOPH website for the latest guidelines.
Among all the talk about foreign travel, let’s not forget just how awesome Switzerland is, which you can keep firmly in the front of your mind by reading our pick of 35 fun things to do in Switzerland.