TEHRAN - Updating the list of countries that are highly affected by the COVID-19 disease, the German authorities have announced that Iran and four other countries will be removed from the high-risk list on Sunday, December 12.

The new update of lists has been published by the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), which is Germany’s responsible body for disease prevention and control. According to the announcement, Iran, Armenia, Mongolia, the Philippines, and Romania who have been fully vaccinated or recovered from the COVID-19 will no longer be part of the high-risk list, according to Schengen Visa.

Moreover, travelers from the cited countries will also be released from the quarantine requirement.

On the other hand, strict entry rules will continue to apply to unvaccinated and unrecovered travelers who reach Germany from one of the countries that are to be removed from the high-risk list.

They can enter Germany only for absolutely essential purposes provided that they follow entry rules, such as testing and quarantine requirements, the report said.

Furthermore, In regards to Germany’s high-risk list, no new countries have been added to it. Still, the list currently includes Switzerland, Poland, Liechtenstein, and several other EU/Schengen Area countries such as Croatia, Belgium, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, Austria, Slovakia, Slovenia, Czechia, and Hungary.

All travelers from a high-risk area need to fill in a digital entry form. Moreover, those who haven’t been vaccinated or recovered from the virus must stay self-isolated for ten days upon their arrival in Germany.

“Travelers who have previously stayed in a high-risk area must have a test, vaccination, or recovery certificate with them and, if a carrier is used, present the proof for the transport,” the authorities explained.

Similar to the high-risk list, Germany’s virus variant areas list has also remained unchanged. Currently, the virus variant list includes Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Zimbabwe, and South Africa.

Beforehand, the German leaders agreed to impose stricter restrictions to prevent the further spread of the COVID-19 and its new variant.

AFM