03 Apr 2021 | 08:55 PM UTC
Cuba: Authorities likely to maintain COVID-19-related travel protocols and domestic restrictions through April /update 20
Cuba to continue entry, quarantine measures and provincially varied restrictions through April, in response to COVID-19.
Event
Authorities in Cuba will likely continue to enforce COVID-19-related domestic restrictions and international travel protocols through at least late April. Domestically, provincial and municipal restrictions will continue to be adjusted according to local case numbers. The following measures are still in place as of April 3:
International Travel
Officials are maintaining existing entry and quarantine requirements for all arrivals. Jose Marti International Airport (HAV) in Havana is operating with the following additional restrictions:
All travelers must present a negative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) COVID-19 test taken 72 hours prior to entry.
All travelers must declare their health status and will be required to take a COVID-19 PCR test upon arrival.
All travelers are required to remain in mandatory isolation for at least five days; a second PCR test will be administered on the fifth day. The isolation period ends when the second test result is negative. Nationals and residents will complete their isolation at designated centers free of charge, while foreign nationals and nonresidents will be isolated in designated hotel facilities at the traveler's expense.
All passengers must pay a sanitary/health tax included in the flight ticket cost to cover the costs of sanitization and COVID-19 testing.
Individuals are required to abide by the local restrictions, wear a facemask in all enclosed public spaces, and adhere to sanitization and physical distancing requirements.
International travel options may be limited. Officials have announced that the reduced flight frequencies for operations between the US, Mexico, Panama, Bahamas, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and Colombia with continue through April, as will the suspension of direct flights to and from Nicaragua, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago and Suriname.
Domestic Measures
Most provinces have regressed to the strictest level of restrictions amid increasing COVID-19 case numbers. Under the strictest of the levels, the level of limited autochthonous transmission (transmision autoctona limitada, TAL), which is the pre-recovery phase, heightened restrictions are placed on nonessential commercial activity and public transport. Following this phase, commercial and recreational activities may resume in a phased approach under Phase 1 and 2 of recovery. Stricter capacity limits and rules around operating hours are enforced under Phase 1. Under Phase 2, authorities may lift restrictions on inter-municipal passenger transport and further ease restrictions on the tourism sector. Generally, under Phase 3 (one step behind New Normal), all economic and productive activities may continue, and interprovincial travel may resume.
Local authorities could enforce additional stricter restrictions on business, public transport, and recreational and group activities. Officials are enforcing some of the strictest measures in Havana, where authorities have prohibited the movement of all public and private transportation nightly between 2100-0500. Officials have also suspended all interprovincial passenger transport.
Authorities could reimpose, extend, further ease, or otherwise amend any restrictions with little-to-no notice depending on disease activity over the coming weeks. Officials could also impose highly targeted quarantine measures in localized communities where the threat of transmission is assessed to be higher, even within provinces under the New Normal phase.
Advice
Follow all official instructions. Abide by national health and safety measures. Reconfirm all travel arrangements. Liaise with trusted contacts for further updates and guidance.
