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Travel Restrictions and Quarantines on Individuals Traveling from China

By February 3, 2020March 31st, 2021COVID-19
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The White House issued a presidential proclamation imposing travel restrictions and quarantines on travelers from China starting on February 2, 2020 due to the coronavirus.

The US will temporarily bar entry of foreign nationals coming from mainland China or have visited mainland China in the 14 days preceding their entry to the US. This temporarily restriction does not apply to the following groups of foreign nationals:

  • U.S. lawful permanent residents;
  • The spouse of a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident;
  • The parent or legal guardian of a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, if the U.S. citizen or permanent resident is unmarried and under the age of 21;
  • The sibling of a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident, provided that both are unmarried and under the age of 21;
  • The child, foster child, or ward of a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident, or who is a prospective adoptee seeking to enter the United States pursuant to the IR-4 or IH-4 visa classifications;
  • A foreign national traveling at the invitation of the U.S. government for a purpose related to containment or mitigation of the virus;
  • Nonimmigrant crewmembers;
  • Foreign nationals seeking entry or transiting the United States under an A-1, A-2, C-2, C-3, G-1, G-2, G-3, G-4, NATO-1 through NATO-4 or NATO-6 visa;
  • A foreign national whose entry would not pose a significant risk of transmitting the virus, as determined by the Centers for Disease Control; and
  • A foreign national whose entry would further important U.S. law enforcement interests or would be in the U.S. national interest.

Foreign nationals who are not on the exempt list above and have visited China in the most recent 14 days will not be admitted to the United States until the proclamation has been lifted. This includes foreign nationals who hold a valid nonimmigrant visa to the US.

For the exempt individuals, the US will impose a mandatory quarantine of individuals who have visited the Hubei province within 14 days of their entry. US citizens who visited other parts of mainland China within the 14 days will undergo health screening at one of the designated ports of entry as well as a monitored self-quarantine of up to 14 days.

As a result the Chinese government’s ban on large gatherings, U.S. embassies and consulates in China have cancelled immigrant and nonimmigrant visa appointments scheduled for the week of February 3. The State Department have not issued a date where visa processing will be resumed.

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