Only four countries not on Estonia's quarantine list from Monday

Only four countries will not be on Estonia's quarantine list from Monday, September 28, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Friday. Lithuania has been added to the list this week.
The restriction on freedom of movement will not apply to passengers starting their trips in Cyprus, Latvia, Finland and the Vatican.
All travelers who start their journey in a country which has a higher infection rate than an average of 16 new infections per 100,000 people over a two week period - or passes through one - will need to isolate for 14 days on arrival.
The only countries with an exception to this are Finland, Latvia and Lithuania which were raised to 25 per 100,000 on September 11.
Below is a list of countries and their infection rates. Countries above 16 are in bold.
- Andorra 593,3
- Austria 110,6
- Belgium 146,7
- Bulgaria 28,2
- Croatia 65,1
- Czech Republic 243,8
- Cyprus 16,7*
- Denmark 103,2
- Finland 16,5*
- France 213,8
- Germany 28,2
- Greece 38,9
- Hungary 122,1
- Iceland 99,4
- Ireland 74,1
- Italy 35,0
- Latvia 7,6
- Liechtenstein 20,9
- Lithuania 31,2
- Luxembourg 174,3
- Malta 140,4
- Monaco 120,9
- Netherlands 142,3
- Norway 28,7
- Poland 27,3
- Portugal 87,9
- Romania 94,6
- San Marino 69,7
- Slovakia 47,9
- Slovenia 68,6
- Spain 319,7
- Sweden 38,8
- Switzerland 68,9
- United Kingdom 87,4
- Vatican 0,0
*According to p 1 terts 3 of Government of the Republic Order No. 172, the restriction on the freedom of movement is not applied in case a country's number of positive tests per 100,000 inhabitants remains between 16 to 17.6 during a period of two weeks.
See the list and advice from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in English here.
Based on a recommendation from the Council of the European Union, Estonia can open its border to 11 countries outside the European Union which have a low infection rate.
Travelers from Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Rwanda, South Korea, Thailand and Uruguay can enter Estonia and do not need to quarantine on arrival.
Starting from September 21, a two-week restriction on the freedom of movement applies to passengers arriving from Canada, Georgia and Tunisia.
The foreign ministry updates its quarantine list every Friday afternoon and the restrictions come into effect the following Monday.
Due to the spread of the coronavirus, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs advises against any non-essential international travel.
What does quarantine mean?
This means that within 14 calendar days of their arrival in Estonia, people must refrain from unnecessary contacts and can leave their place of residence or permanent accommodation only for seeing a doctor and shopping for food, essentials and medicines, or in emergencies.
Coronavirus testing opportunity for people arriving in Estonia
From September 1, people returning to Estonia from COVID-19 risk countries will have the opportunity to be tested for coronavirus at the airport and port in order to shorten the 14-day restriction on the freedom of movement and allow them to return to work sooner.
Testing is free of charge for Estonian residents; foreigners can take the test at a cost of €67 and can pay on the spot by card.
Until the test results are known, a person must stay in complete self-isolation. In the case of a negative result, the person will be notified via text message, positive results will be communicated over the phone. The result will also be visible when entering the health information system with an ID card.
In the case of a negative test result, the person must stay in limited self-isolation for the first seven days following arrival to Estonia, i.e. the person can go to work and, for example, a shop, but unnecessary contacts must be avoided. The person should also keep their distance from others while at work.
A second test must be performed no earlier than seven days after the results of the first test, and if it is also negative, a person can resume their daily life.
This means that after two negative tests a person will not be subjected to the full 14-day period of restriction on the freedom of movement, which applies to everyone coming from high-risk countries who did not undergo testing.
More information about testing can be found here.
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Editor: Helen Wright