Vietnam has decided to reduce quarantine time to one week instead of three for incoming people who got two shots of the Covid-19 vaccine.

Vietnamese returnees at an airpot. Photo: Vietnam Airlines

Subsequent medical surveillance for one week will also be required for those who are people who enter Vietnam via all international terminals like border gates, airports, seaports.

The northern province of Quang Ninh will be selected for the one-month pilot plan starting from July 1, according to the decision signed by Deputy Health Minister Do Xuan Tuyen.

People who are subject to the new regulations need to show vaccination certificates issued within one year prior to the entry. Types of vaccines are those approved by the World Health Organization (WHO), the US Centers for Diseases Control and Preventions (CDC), the European Medicines Agency (EMA), and Vietnam.

Those who recovered from Covid-19 with negative testing will be eligible for one-week quarantine.

There are some quarantine options for the incoming people including at hotels and resorts, and barracks.

Incoming people also need to declare medical status on apps applied in Vietnam right after the entry and once getting health problems.

Those who are not subject to the above category will undergo14-day quarantine.

Currently, Vietnam imposes 21-day quarantine to all incoming people and first-generation contacts (F1) of the index case.

In a survey conducted among businesses on May 21-22 by the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Hanoi, the length of the quarantine period topped five challenges for bringing people from outside Vietnam.

AmCham’s executive director Adam Sitkoff said Vietnam should relax its lengthy quarantine period for vaccinated businesspeople to facilitate foreign investment.