Who says Sweden has no restrictions in place for COVID? Why do people always assumed Sweden is a "free for all" place? They just banned people from coming in.
Sweden Extends Entry Ban on Third-Country Travellers for Another 2 Months
August 27, 2021
Amid increasing rates of COVID-19 cases in the country, Sweden has decided to extend the entry ban on travellers from outside the country for another two months at least.
The decision has been announced by the Swedish Ministry of Justice on Thursday, August 26, according to which, exempt from the entry ban are only travellers from the Nordic countries, as well as travellers from the other EU/EEA countries. The latter, however, can enter Sweden for non-essential purposes only if they have either:
- been vaccinated against COVID-19,
- tested negative within 72 hours before reaching Sweden, or
- recovered from COVID-19 in the last six months.
Arrivals from the Nordic countries – Denmark, Finland, Iceland and Norway – can enter restriction-free and are not subject to any of the three requirements listed above.
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Travellers from countries outside the EU/EEA can only enter Sweden if they are covered by one of the exemptions from the entry ban and can also present a negative COVID-19 test result. The extended entry bans apply until October 31, 2021, or until further notice,” the Ministry further notes.
This means that eligible to enter Sweden from third-countries are only those travelling for absolutely essential purposes, as passengers in transit, people who travel for the purpose of studying, seasonal workers, healthcare workers, etc.
At the same time, exempt from the entry ban on non-essential travel from third countries are the residents of the countries under
the EU’s list of epidemiologically safe third countries, which are as follows: Albania, Armenia, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Hong Kong, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Kosovo, Lebanon, Montenegro, Macao, North Macedonia, New Zealand, Qatar, Moldova, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Ukraine or the United States.
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For a foreign citizen to be exempt from the entry ban will also require them to be able to present a certificate showing a negative result for ongoing COVID-19 infection from a test conducted within 48 hours prior to arrival,” the Ministry of Justice notes.
It further adds that the reason behind the government’s decision to extend the entry ban is the continued uncertainty concerning COVID-19-infection and the spread of particularly significant variants of the virus.
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So far, Sweden has recorded a total of 1,120,628 COVID-19 cases since the beginning of the pandemic, 1,278 of which within the last 24 hours, data by the World Health Organization reveals.
Due to the increase in the number of cases in the Swedish territory, the country is now coloured completely red in the maps of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) which are published weekly in support of the Council Recommendation on a coordinated approach to the restriction of free movement within the block amid COVID-19.
As a result, the ECDC advises the rest of the member states to impose stricter entry restrictions on arrivals from Sweden like pre-departure COVID-19 testing and quarantine.
Data by ECDC shows that Sweden has managed to fully vaccinate 66.6 per cent of its 10.23 million population.