The Ministry of Public Health announced new procedures to ensure the continued facilitation of the entry process into the State of Qatar through its air, land and sea ports for travelers who have completed vaccination against the Corona virus (Covid-19) with vaccines approved by the Ministry of Public Health in the State of Qatar, as of the date of 12 July 2021.

Passengers coming to Qatar from all ports will also have to pre-register on the "Ehteraz" website (WWW.EHTERAZ.GOV.QA) and attach all the required documents before arriving in the State of Qatar for a period of no less than 12 hours.

GENERAL POLICY:

  1. Citizens and Residents can travel abroad at any time, provided they adhere to the travel and return policy.
  2. Qatar has classified countries into Green, Yellow and Red based on the level of risk.
  3. Travelers coming to Qatar (including Qatar citizen and resident ) are required to register trough the Ehteraz website (www.ehteraz.gov.qa) at least 12 hours before travel and upload the required official documents. They will be issued a Travel Authorization, which they will be required to present to the boarding staff to be allowed to fly to Qatar, or to the Immigration officials at the land border.
  4. Unvaccinated citizens and residents wishing to travel abroad to one of the countries not included in the COVID-19 Green List must book a hotel quarantine package from the listed hotels on the " Discover Qatar" website before traveling.  
  5. Those wishing to travel must know the procedures applied in the country they want to visit in terms of quarantine procedures, duration, and the need to provide a COVID-19-free certificate.
  6. COVID-19 PCR-test to travel abroad should be conducted at one of the private healthcare facilities announced by MOPH.  .
  7. RT PCR Test must be done in a medical center approved by the local health authority (of the issuing country) to perform COVID-19 PCR tests
  8. GCC citizens who have recovered from COVID-19 must present the original Vaccination certificate (at least one dose of a vaccine approved by MOPH Qatar), RT-PCR Test and certificate of prior infection with COVID-19 with a valid QR Code.
  9. Employees must coordinate with their employers about the dates of their travel and return to Qatar. They should consider the quarantine period when planning their trip.
  10. All passengers transiting through Qatar must have the mandatory pre-travel PCR test certificate valid for (72) hours of arrival to Qatar, and in case they require another PCR test for their onward destination, they can have it at Hamad International Airport on a standard fee of QAR 300/- per test.
  11. If the hotel quarantine criteria apply, the government will cover the costs of the hotel quarantine packages for patients receiving their treatment abroad (with written confirmation from the Medical Treatment Committee Abroad) at the expense of the State, along with their official escorts. The employer is responsible to cover the quarantine expenses for their employees who are on official missions
  12. With home quarantine, the accommodation conditions should be suitable, provided it has a separate room with its ensuite bathroom. If the accommodation is not appropriate, one of the hotel quarantine packages must be booked for through the "Discover Qatar" website before traveling to Qatar
  13. The validity of the vaccine to grant quarantine exemption is 12 months, starting (14) days after the second dose. This immunity period could be extended based on new and emerging data.
  14. Lists of approved/conditionally approved vaccines by the Ministry of Public Health:

Approved Vaccines

*Conditionally Approved Vaccines

  • Pfizer BioNTech
  • Sinopharm
  • Moderna

  • Oxford-Astrazeneca

  • Janssen/ Johnson&Johnson
    (One dose)

 

  • Travelers fully vaccinated with the above-specified *conditional vaccines will be subject to an antibody test on arrival, if the result is positive with antibodies, exempted from quarantine; otherwise the traveler must undergo applicable quarantine based on country of departure and perform COVID-19 PCR tests upon arrival.
  • Travelers must present an official vaccination certificate with a valid QR Code that includes the following information:
    1. Name of the recipient as mentioned in their passport. 
    2. Vaccination Date clearly written as 1st and/or 2nd dose.
    3. Type/Name of vaccine. 
    4. Vaccine Lot number (if available)
    5. Official logo and stamp of the vaccination authority

Recovered individuals:

  1. Citizens and residents recovered from a previous infection within the last (12) months are exempted from quarantine upon return from their travel abroad, if they were asymptomatic and their PCR test result was negative.
  2. This rule applies to individuals diagnosed in Qatar. Those who were diagnosed in any GCC member states and received at least 1 dose of the MOPH-Qatar recognized vaccine are exempted from quarantine provided they submit a certificate with a valid QR code detailing the previous infection and recovery issued by their local GCC state health authority
  3. It is the responsibility of individuals to ensure that they are updated with any changes in the Entry and Return policy of the State of Qatar through the official sources and the sites mentioned above before planning their trip.

 

Group A: Qatari Citizens and Residents including GCC Citizens who have a valid QID

 

– Before Traveling to Qatar:

  1. One negative RT-PCR test carried out maximum 72 hours before time of arrival is required; It must be done in a medical center approved by the local health authority of the issuing country to perform COVID-19 PCR tests.
  2. Register trough the Ehteraz website (www.ehteraz.gov.qa) at least 12 hours before travel, and upload the required official documents. 
  3. You are exempted from quarantine if you are fully vaccinated with an MOPH recognized vaccine and at least (14) days have passed after receiving the second dose of a two-dose series vaccine or from the single dose in case of single-dose regime vaccine.
  4. Unvaccinated travelers, vaccinated with other vaccines not recognized in the State of Qatar, and those who fall short of the 14 days vaccine administration period since the second dose: 
    1. You will be subject to quarantine for a period depending on the country classification you travel from. You will need to book a hotel package through Discover Qatar if you are coming from Yellow (7 days) or Red countries (10 days). 
    2. Children 0-11 years old will follow the same entry regime of their parents. If the latter are vaccinated, the children will be considered as vaccinated
    3. Unvaccinated Children 12-17 years old will be required to do quarantine as for the procedure assigned to the country of departure. In case of hotel quarantine, they will be accompanied by one parent, even if the latter is vaccinated
  5. For unvaccinated travelers belonging to group A and had trips to multiple countries for the last 10 days: to benefit for the quarantine privileges of the lower-tier country classification, they must be staying in the said lower-tier country COVID-19 classification for minimum period of 10 days.
  6. For unvaccinated travelers belonging to group A and are returning from a medical treatment abroad must submit a clearance certificate (via Pre-entry registration www.Ehteraz.gov.qa) from the Medical Treatment Abroad Committee; Patients and their one (1) fully vaccinated escort coming from green and yellow countries shall be on home quarantine depending on the required quarantine period  (i.e. Green – 5 days; Yellow – 7 days); while patients coming from Red country will be subject to 10 days hotel quarantine, they will be accompanied by their escort even if the latter is vaccinated.
  7. For unvaccinated lactating mothers, pregnant women, and those 75 years old and above will undergo the same testing and quarantine policy as to the rest of unvaccinated individuals.

– Testing and Quarantine Policy On Arrival in Qatar:

  1. Travelers with symptoms will be tested as necessary as judged by the medical team at the ports.
  2. Travelers who are unvaccinated, inoculated with vaccines not recognized in the State of Qatar, or who fall short of the 14 days vaccine administration period since the second dose will undergo: 
    1. Coming from Green countries: 5 days home quarantine and a repeat RT-PCR test in PHCC on day 4, you will be discharged on day 5 if test is negative.
    2. Coming from Yellow countries: 7 days hotel quarantine and a repeat RT-PCR test (on traveler’s expense) in the hotel on day 6, you will be discharged on day 7 if test is negative.
    3. Coming from Red countries: 10 days hotel quarantine and a repeat PCR on arrival in the hotel, and on day 9 (on traveler’s expense), you will be discharged on day 10 if test is negative.
  3. Vaccinated travelers coming from Red countries will undergo a repeat RT-PCR test (on traveler’s expense) on arrival in HIA/land border, if the test is positive, traveler must adhere to isolation protocol.

 

Group B: Family Visitors, Business, Leisure, including GCC citizens who are non-QID holder/non-resident:  

Entry is restricted to vaccinated, and/or recovered individuals as defined in numbers 13, 14, 15, 16 in the General policy.

Fully vaccinated individuals:

  • Exempted from quarantine if you are fully vaccinated with an MOPH recognized vaccine and at least (14) days have passed after receiving the second dose of a two-dose series vaccine or from the single dose in case of single-dose regime vaccine.
  • Children 0-11 years old will follow the same entry regime of their parents. If the latter are vaccinated, the children will be considered as vaccinated. 
  • Unvaccinated Children 12-17 years old will be required to do quarantine as for the procedure assigned to the country of departure. In case of hotel quarantine, they will be accompanied by one parent, even if the latter is vaccinated.
  • It is mandatory for travelers to install and activate Ehteraz app on their mobile phone using locally authorized SIM cards that can be obtained from one of the local providers (Ooredoo or Vodafone).

 

EHTERAZ APP. POLICY:

  • Travelers arriving or returning to the State of Qatar must download and activate the Ehteraz app on their mobiles upon arrival to the Port of Entry (PoE). To achieve that the below must be obtained by the traveler:
    • A Qatari SIM Card from a local telecom operator (Ooredoo and Vodafone).
    • Internet access.
    • A smartphone that supports either Android 6 and up or IOS 13.5 and higher.
    • Download the application on your mobile phone either via Google Play or Apple App Store or from any search engines on the internet.
    • Knowing that, SIM cards and smartphones are available for purchase at Hamad International Airport and Abu Samra port if the traveler does not have them before arrival.
  • Diplomats, administrative cardholders, and VVIP visitors are exempted.
  • Health status on Ehteraz will remain YELLOW for the whole of quarantine duration, and until a negative COVID-19 test result is obtained as per the quarantine policy stated above.
  • Health Status on Ehteraz for the fully vaccinated individuals in Qatar will remain GREEN with a Golden Frame to indicate they are exempted from quarantine if their PCR test result was negative and they completed (14) days after the second dose.
  • The Health Status on Ehteraz for citizens and residents who have been vaccinated abroad will remain GREEN without Golden Frame until their vaccination data are updated in the system. 
  • The Health Status on Ehteraz for visitors who have been vaccinated abroad will remain GREEN without Golden Frame until their vaccination data are updated in the system

Travelers returning from Umrah:

  • Citizens and residents who came from Umrah and cannot provide a valid PCR test certificate should be allowed to board their flights but they must undergo PCR test upon arrival at Hamad International Airport or Abu Samra port on a standard fee of QAR 300/- per test.
  • All travelers must be vaccinated following KSA rules that only vaccinated individuals could perform Umrah and visit Makkah.
  • Individuals planning to travel for Umrah should refer to the policy and procedures announced by the Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs.

 

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