On Friday, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) announced that five countries had been added to Germany’s “high risk” travel list.

Switzerland added to Germany’s “high risk” list

The RKI has announced that five more countries have been designated as “high risk” due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Neighbouring Switzerland and Poland have joined Liechtenstein, Jordan and Mauritius in being added to the travel list, with any unvaccinated passengers arriving in Germany from these countries now having to quarantine for up to 10 days.

Any travellers who have stayed in these countries in the 10 days before their visit to Germany (or any other countries that have been designated a high-risk area or area of variant concern) will have to fill out the Digital Registration on Entry form.

Anyone who cannot supply proof of vaccination or recovery from COVID will have to travel directly to their accommodation in Germany and self-isolate for 10 days. This period can be shortened to five days upon receiving a negative test result. Children under the age of 12 only have to quarantine for five days, without the need for a coronavirus test.

Switzerland facing record coronavirus infections

The German government is keen to mitigate the threat of infection from other countries. Both Switzerland and Poland have recently experienced significant rises in the number of coronavirus infections - just last week, Switzerland experienced record coronavirus infections and a shortage of ICU beds and, in Poland, only just over half of the population has been fully vaccinated.

Germany is a popular tourist destination for people from neighbouring countries around this time of the year, with people coming to Germany from Switzerland to take advantage of the cheaper prices. A lot of people also commute between Germany and neighbouring countries, all of whom are at risk of infection. There are exemptions for cross-border commuters and people who spend less than 24 hours in Germany, however, travel rules do continue to get stricter and stricter.

Regions of variant concern

With coronavirus infection rates soaring globally, and the outbreak of the Omicron variant, Germany has added more countries to its “regions of variant concern list." South Africa, Botswana, Eswatini, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia and Zimbabwe were all added to the list last week.

Only German citizens, or people with German residency, can enter Germany from these countries. Everyone that does arrive from an area of variant concern, regardless of vaccination status, must quarantine for 14 days.