BREAKING: Czech Government Opens the Borders

The Czech cabinet lifted a ban on its citizens traveling abroad for reasons other than work following an improvement in conditions of the coronavirus outbreak. The news has been reported by Novinky.cz

“It is possible to travel abroad, even for a holiday. But when one returns, they have to be COVID-negative, with proof by a test, or go into a two-week quarantine,” Vojtech said at a televised news conference.

Czech citizens and foreigners with permission to enter the country have two options for arrival in the Czech Republic from the midnight on Friday 24 April, 2020: present a negative coronavirus test upon return or be subject to two-week quarantine.

The test must not be older than four days. “We want to make it as easy as possible for people to return to the Czech Republic. I have been promoting the possibility of avoiding quarantine after submitting the test for a long time,” said Minister Jan Hamáček (CSSD).

“Commuters will be able to cross the border every day if they prove a negative test for COVID-19 every 14 days,” the Minister specified.

The Czech government has also removed the restrictions to the free movement of persons.

“The Czech government will cancel restrictions on free movement as of Friday, April 24 and allow groups of up to 10 people to meet in public. So far, public gatherings were limited to two people,” said Minister Vojtěch during a press conference.

“We have been able to manage the pandemic exceptionally well on the territory of the Czech Republic,” Vojtech told a televised news conference.

On March 12, the government decided to declare a state of emergency in the Czech Republic in connection with the SARS CoV-2 coronavirus. At the same time, it banned travel to the most high-risk countries and banned foreigners from those countries from entering the country.

Here you can watch the today’s press conference: