Dengue cases and deaths soar to record levels
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Update 21 January 2022: Interministerial Ordinance 666 of 20 Janeiro 2022 eventually lifted the ban imposed on flights and travellers from Southern African countries. While the new Ordinance revokes Ordinance 663/2021, it maintains COVID-19 vaccine and testing mandates as a condition of entry into the country, with a few exceptions.
There have been no changes in the requirements for crew changes and repatriations at Brazilian ports under the new regulation as earlier reported.
Update 21/12/2021: Following the Supreme Court ruling that all travellers arriving in Brazil must show proof of vaccination against COVID-19, the government has revised its entry regulations. Interministerial Ordinance 663 of 20 December 2021 revoked Ordinances 661/2021 and 662/2021 and is already in force. It regulates the entry of air and land travellers and heightens vaccine mandates and testing for travellers. Read more.
Update 17/12/2021: By a majority of votes, the Federal Supreme Court (STF) validated the requirement of proof of vaccination Against COVID-19 for travellers of any nationality arriving in Brazil. The final judgement of the case is scheduled for February 2022, but its effect is already in force.
According to the STF ruling, Brazilian and foreign nationals who left Brazil after 14 December 2021, must present a vaccination certificate upon their return to the country, failing which they will have to be quarantined on arrival as per Ordinance 661/2021.
Vaccine mandates also apply to seafarers and shore-based visitors to vessels and platforms in Brazilian waters.
Update 10 December 2021: In an extra edition of the Official Gazette of 10 December 2021, the federal government issued Ordinance 662 putting off the enforcement of vaccine mandates provided for in Ordinance 661 of 8 December 2021 to 18 December 2021.
According to the Ministry of Health, the sudden deferral of mandatory vaccination resulted from a ransomware attack that brought down the Ministry’s servers and two of its main portals handling COVID-19 data (ConecteSUS and Portal Covid), among other health-related information. The hacking took place in the early hours of 10 December 2021.
While millions of users cannot access their digital vaccination certificates – and many may be unable to travel to certain countries if they do not have printed proof of full vaccination -, the Minister of Health said that backups are being recovered and the systems will be up and running again soon with no data loss; however, it has not provided a forecast of when it will happen.
The Federal Police have opened a criminal inquiry to investigate this cyber attack. Last September, the Ministry of Health suffered a website defacement attack that temporarily affected travellers’ ability to access the platform for completing the Traveller’s Health Declaration (DSV) form.
Foreigners travelling to Brazil will have to present proof of complete vaccination against COVID-19 or else undergo in-country quarantine
In response to the emergency of the new COVID-19 variant “Omicron” and following guidance from the National Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA), as of 11 December 2021, Brazil will require proof of immunisation against COVID-19 as a condition of entry of air and land travellers into the country.
Travellers must have completed vaccination 14 days before the scheduled arrival in Brazil. Regardless of being fully vaccinated, they are still required to provide a negative or undetectable molecular or antigen test for COVID-19.
Under Interministerial Ordinance 661 published on 9 December 2021, travellers who have not completed their immunisation cycle when they arrive in Brazil must self-quarantine for five days at their intended destination in the country.
The updated travel regulation maintains the temporary ban on some Southern African countries, imposed through the now-repealed Ordinance 660 of 27 November 2021.
Ordinance 661/2021 does not apply to cargo transportation. To that end, ANVISA has just published revised guidelines on maritime crews on cargo vessels and platforms, including COVID-19 vaccine mandates for on-signers, off-signers, and shore visitors.
Air travel
Entry requirements
Brazilian and foreign air travellers departing for Brazil are required to provide the air carrier with printed or electronic proof of:
- Test for COVID-19, with a negative or undetectable result, performed up to 24 hours prior to boarding for antigen test or 72 hours for the RT-PCR test
- Completion of the Traveller’s Health Declaration (DSV) form, no later than 72 hours before boarding; and
- Full immunisation against COVID-19 with any vaccine approved by ANVISA, WHO or the health authority of the country where the traveller was inoculated
Proof of vaccination will be waived for travellers who are ineligible for immunisation, according to criteria established by the Ministry of Health in the National Plan for the Operationalisation of Vaccination Against COVID-19 (in Portuguese).
On flights with connections or layovers in which the traveller remains in a restricted airport area, the time limits for the antigen or molecular test will be considered in relation to the boarding time of the first leg of the journey. Otherwise, the traveller must present evidence of a new test with a negative or undetectable result at the time of check-in at the last point before arrival in Brazil.
In-country quarantine
Travellers who do not have proof of vaccination or whose last or single dose was administered less than fourteen days before boarding may enter the country, provided they agree to submit themselves a five-day quarantine at the address registered on the DSV form.
Quarantined travellers will be monitored by the Strategic Health Surveillance Information Centre (CIEVS) in the jurisdiction where the travellers will be staying.
Upon completion of the quarantine, the travellers must perform an antigen or RT-PCR testing, and if the result is negative or undetectable, the quarantine will be over.
If the travellers refuse to take the test, or if the result detects SARS-CoV-2 infection, they will be quarantined according to the criteria established by the Ministry of Health through the COVID-19 Epidemiological Surveillance Guide (in Portuguese).
Air travel ban
Passenger flights to and from South Africa, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia and Zimbabwe remain suspended under the revised travel restrictions.
ANVISA had proposed to the federal government earlier this month to expand the list of restrictions to include flights and travellers from Angola, Malawi, Mozambique, and Zambia. Nevertheless, updated government regulation did not restrict these southern African countries.
Air cargo transportation is not affected by the temporary ban.
Exceptions
Ordinance 661/2021 does not apply to Brazilian citizens and foreigners falling under the following categories:
- foreign nationals with a permanent residence permit;
- foreign professionals on a mission at the service of an international organisation;
- foreign official accredited to the Brazilian Government; and
- foreign nationals:
- spouse, partner, child, parent, or guardian of a Brazilian national;
- whose entry is specifically authorised by the Brazilian Government in view of the public or for humanitarian reasons; and
- holder of a National Migration Register card (Registro Nacional Migratório – RNM)
Air travellers who meet any of the above exceptions and have been in one of the restricted countries must undergo a fourteen-day quarantine in the destination city upon arrival in Brazil.
Land travel
Restrictions on land travel have eventually been lifted. Travellers from all neighbouring countries, except Paraguay, must present proof of vaccination, in addition to a negative or undetectable test result for COVID-19 within 24 hours for the antigen test or 72 hours for the RT-PCR test.
Exceptions
COVID-19 vaccine mandates for land border crossing do not apply to:
- Implementation of cross-border humanitarian actions previously authorised by local health authorities
- Transit of border residents in twin cities as long as the neighbouring country reciprocates the treatment
- Transport of cargo or to road freight’s drivers and helpers
- Implementation of emergency assistance measures for the reception and regularisation of migration, per the immigration laws, to persons in vulnerable situations resulting from migratory flow caused by a humanitarian crisis
- Professionals on a mission at the service of an international organisation, if duly identified
- Spouse, partner, children, parents, or guardian of a Brazilian national
- Foreign nationals whose entry is authorised by the Brazilian Government in the public interest or for humanitarian reasons
- Holders of the RNM card
- Foreign officials accredited to the Brazilian government
Under certain circumstances specified in the regulation, a foreign traveller who does not have vaccination proof can be admitted into Brazil upon permission from the Federal Police (immigration authority).
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Issued 8 December 2021. Updated 21 December 2021.
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