Covid-19: compulsory quarantine to enter France extended to seven additional countries

Travelers from seven additional countries, including Turkey, will have to observe a mandatory ten-day quarantine on arrival in France due to the circulation of the coronavirus epidemic in these countries, a government source announced on Friday. 'AFP.

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12 countries involved

This restriction will also apply to Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, United Arab Emirates and Qatar.

The measure will come into effect on Saturday midnight, after publication on Saturday morning of the related decree, the same source said.

For the time being, five countries had been subject to quarantine since April 24: Brazil, India, Chile, South Africa and Argentina.

Travelers from these territories must provide proof upon arrival of a PCR test of less than 36 hours.

On this point, "a tolerance will be granted this weekend for the new countries concerned," the same government source told AFP.

Passengers must declare to the airline their place of quarantine in France, supporting documentation.

However, this quarantine comes with permission to leave between 10 a.m. and 12 p.m.

1,500 checks carried out according to the government

Any offender is liable to a fine of 1,000 to 1,500 euros in the event of a repeat offense.

Government spokesman Gabriel Attal said Wednesday that "1,500 checks" had already been carried out "on people in quarantine and 141 people fined".

"We must be very vigilant in the face of variants," he insisted.

These additional measures come as the epidemic soars in India, which this week recorded nearly half of the global cases, and in its neighboring countries.

Turkey is experiencing a decrease in the number of cases (-34%), but at a still high threshold (average of 27,000 cases per day).