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Greece issues new instructions for air travel

As part of the Greek government's efforts to curb the spread of Covid-19, the Hellenic Civil Aviation Authority (HCAA) issued new travel guides (NOTAM) on Tuesday, September 1st, which will remain in force until midnight on September 15th.

For each violation of the directives, fines of 5,000 euros will be imposed.

More specifically, the new instructions that apply to travel in Greece:

• Extension of the suspension of all flights between Greece and Turkey,

• The suspension of all flights from Catalonia to Spain,

• All flights to and from Greece from Albania and Northern Macedonia are operated only through Athens International Airport (AIA). There will be no routes to other Greek airports,

• Travelers visiting Greece by air from Bulgaria, Romania, the United Arab Emirates, Malta, Sweden, Belgium, Spain, Albania and Northern Macedonia will only be allowed to enter Greece with a negative test result. Covid-19. The test must be carried out 72 hours before arrival,

• Non-European (non-EU) citizens are barred from entering Greece with the following exceptions: Australia, Canada, Georgia, Japan, New Zealand, Rwanda, South Korea, Thailand, Tunisia, Uruguay and United Arab Emirates) ,

• Passengers traveling by air to Greece from Israel are allowed to enter only with a negative Covid-19 test result. The test must be performed by PCR up to 72 hours before arrival.

• Permanent residents of Israel wishing to visit Greece should retake the Covid-19 test. The HCAA has also set a maximum entry limit of 1,200 travelers per week from Israel and only through the airports of Athens, Thessaloniki, Heraklion, Corfu and Kos,

• All travelers on international flights to Greece are required by law to complete the Compulsory Passenger Tracking Form (PLF) online, which can also be done one day prior to arrival,

• Before boarding flights, airlines are required by law to provide (a) PLF submission confirmation at least one day prior to flight b) QR code and PLF in hard copy or on mobile phone.

• Non-compliant airlines will be responsible for repatriating passengers to the detriment of the company.

According to the announcement of the airline HCAA, Greeks belonging to repatriation programs are exempted from the above instructions.

It should be noted that RT-PCR test results certificates must be written in English and bear the traveler's name and passport / national ID number. Laboratories performing RT-PCR tests should be: national reference laboratories, national public health laboratories or private laboratories accredited by the respective national accreditation authorities.

* All the instructions mentioned have been received by the Hellenic Civil Aviation Authority (HCAA) and are subject to change based on the evolution of the coronary pandemic, government decisions and European Union directives.

* Regulations on permitted entry into countries are subject to change after 14 days, when updated assessments are made on the basis of epidemiological data from the country of origin.