NEW YORK – On Nov. 8, for the first time since March 20, 2020, a planeload of tourists from the U.K. touched down at New York’s JFK airport, marking a milestone as restrictions curbing international travel were finally eased after a 20-month span. U.S. land border restrictions barring tourist travel from Canada and Mexico have also been relaxed.
During that time, international air travel from the U.K., Europe and other countries in Asia and South America was restricted to American citizens, green-card holders or those who obtained special exemptions.
The new rules allow for any international tourist to fly in as long as they can provide proof of vaccination if they are 18 and older along with a negative Covid test. Those between ages two and 18 don’t need to provide proof of vaccination but do need to have a negative test for Covid.
The eased airline restrictions apply to tourist travel from the U.K. and Europe along with China, India, Iran and Brazil, which together accounted for more than 50 percent of international tourists making trips to the U.S. in 2019, according to reports. The reported economic costs related to those canceled trips is estimated to have been more than $300 billion.
Along with the easing of restrictions against airline travel, the relaxation of restrictions against tourists at U.S. land borders is also reported creating major backups at ports of entry at both the northern and southern borders between the U.S. and Canada and Mexico.
