Prior Covid-19 tests mandatory for all passengers arriving or transiting through UAE airports

The UAE has decided to make it mandatory for all inbound and transit passengers at the country’s airports, to undergo Covid-19 tests prior to boarding their flights.

This directive applies to Emiratis, residents, and tourists, arriving via the country’s airports, irrespective of the countries they are coming from, reported official news agency WAM.

Children under the age of 12 and those with severe and moderate disabilities will be exempted from the mandatory test requirement, the results of which are valid for 96 hours from the time of testing.

The decision to apply prior testing on all those coming to the country will come into effect from August 1.

This latest requirement will not overwrite the mandatory testing measures that travellers have to follow upon arrival at the country’s airports.

All passengers travelling through the country’s airports to EU countries and the UK, as well as other countries that require a PCR test, have to get tested prior to boarding their respective planes, added a joint statement by the National Crisis and Emergency Management Authority (NCEMA) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MOFAIC).

The directive will apply to passengers arriving on all airlines.

A website screening.purehealth.ae allows incoming residents and visitors to locate a PCR testing centre in the country of their departure so that they can undergo these mandatory tests.