Allowing U.S. Citizens, U.S. Nationals, Lawful Permanent Residents, and their Spouses and Children Leaving Shanghai, China, to Travel to the United States Without a Pre-Departure COVID-19 Test or Documentation of Recovery through May 11, 2022
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has announced that, based on a request from the U.S. Department of State, it is exercising its enforcement discretion regarding its “Amended Order: Requirement for Proof of Negative COVID-19 Test Result or Recovery from COVID-19 for All Airline Passengers Arriving into the United States,” effective immediately. CDC has determined that the current exigent circumstances in Shanghai, China may preclude individuals from meeting the requirements of CDC’s amended Testing Order. This exercise of enforcement discretion is limited to the following individuals departing Shanghai, China: U.S. Citizens; U.S. Nationals, Lawful Permanent Residents (LPR); noncitizens in possession of a valid U.S. immigrant visa; and noncitizen nonimmigrants who are traveling with a U.S. citizen or LPR and possess valid travel documents allowing them to travel to the United States.
While CDC has determined that all air passengers two years of age or older, with limited exemptions, boarding a flight to the United States from a foreign country must meet the requirements of the amended Testing Order, if individuals subject to this exercise of enforcement discretion are not able to be tested in the timeframe required, the airlines may proceed with boarding these individuals without meeting the requirement of a negative COVID-19 test or documentation of recovery from COVID-19. Additionally, consistent with international and domestic public health recommendations, and consistent with CDC recommendations for international travel and domestic public health recommendations, individuals should take all necessary and appropriate steps to protect the health of themselves and others during travel, including by properly wearing a well-fitting mask or respirator to keep the nose and mouth covered during the flight, as well as on public transportation and in airports and other transportation hubs. This exercise of enforcement discretion is effective immediately and will expire on May 11, 2022, at 23:59 ET, subject to any further extensions.
Individuals covered by this exercise of enforcement discretion will not be required to provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test result or documentation of recovery prior to boarding a flight to the United States, or to complete the attestation at Section 1 of the Combined Passenger Disclosure and Attestation to the United States of America form.
Some individuals who are subject to this enforcement discretion, such as spouses, may be noncitizen nonimmigrants who are required to show proof of vaccination under Presidential Proclamation 10294 on Advancing the Safe Resumption of Global Travel During the COVID-19 Pandemic and CDC’s Amended Order: Implementing Presidential Proclamation on Advancing the Safe Resumption of Global Travel During the COVID-19 Pandemic. Individuals who are not considered fully vaccinated with an accepted COVID-19 vaccine may apply for a humanitarian or emergency exception to the vaccination requirement by submitting an exception request to the nearest U.S. Embassy. For more information visit COVID-19 Information – U.S. Embassy & Consulates in China.
In case of emergency, please reach out to the Embassy or Consulate General in your consular district by calling +(86)(10) 8531-4000. Further information can also be found at https://china.usembassy-china.org.cn/contact/ and emailing:
- Embassy Beijing: BeijingACS@state.gov
- Consulate General Guangzhou: GuangzhouACS@state.gov
- Consulate General Shanghai: ShanghaiACS@state.gov
- Consulate General Shenyang: ShenyangACS@state.gov
- Consulate General Wuhan: WuhanACS@state.gov