(Beijing) “It’s over… spring is coming! “: the Chinese rejoiced Tuesday the abolition of the mandatory quarantine on arrival in China and hastened to book flights abroad, after three years of isolation due to COVID-19.
China will end mandatory quarantines on arrival on January 8, the last vestige of its strict “zero COVID-19” health policy, authorities announced on Monday.
This decision comes at a time when the most populous country in the world is however experiencing an outbreak of contamination since the abandonment of most of its health restrictions in early December.
Many Chinese reacted enthusiastically on Tuesday to the upcoming end of these restrictions, which have kept their country isolated from the outside world since March 2020.
“The travel plans I’ve had for three years will be able to become reality,” says Fan Chengcheng, a 27-year-old office worker I met in Beijing.
“It’s finally back to normal in China! », notes for its part to 1000 km from there Ji Weihe, a resident of Shanghai.
“It’s over… Spring is coming!” “After three years of frustration, summed up a user on the Weibo social network, in tune with other online comments.
“Chinese friends, France welcomes you with open arms! “Commented the French Embassy in Beijing on this same social network.
Want something new
The news indeed prompted a jump in online searches for outbound flights on Tuesday, state media reported.
Within half an hour of the announcement, the number of searches for destinations outside mainland China increased 10 times from a year ago, according to Trip.com, one of the travel booking sites the most prominent.
Macau, Hong Kong, Japan, Thailand and South Korea are among the most popular destinations.
Travel app Tongcheng reports an 850% jump in searches on its platform.
On Tuesday, the Chinese immigration services announced the gradual resumption, from January 8, of the issuance of passports for the purposes of “tourism” or for “visits of friends abroad”.
Procedures have so far been suspended due to the epidemic, which has prevented some Chinese from renewing their passports.
But the return to normality is still far from certain: Japan announced on Tuesday the upcoming obligation of a COVID-19 test for all travelers from China.
Because with the abandonment of most health restrictions, the Asian giant is experiencing an outbreak of contamination.
” Relief ”
Without citing Japan, Beijing on Tuesday called on its neighbor to take “scientific and appropriate” measures against COVID-19, and which “do not disrupt” human exchanges.
The surge in the number of COVID-19 patients in China comes just weeks before the Lunar New Year in late January, when millions of people will travel to reunite with loved ones.
The epidemic rebound raises fears of high mortality among the oldest, more vulnerable and less vaccinated.
The decision to abolish quarantines on arrival spells the end of China’s strict “zero COVID-19” policy.
It resulted in widespread screening tests, unexpected confinements and long mandatory quarantines, which disrupted the second largest economy in the world.
“It’s a relief,” said Tom Simpson, head of the Sino-British Chamber of Commerce, “it puts an end to three years of very significant disruption”.
Mr. Simpson, however, sees only a “gradual” recovery, while international air links with China have been drastically reduced for three years.
Nevertheless, the announcement is “very, very welcome”, he told AFP.
Epidemic “not over”
The Chamber of Commerce of the European Union, for its part, welcomed a decision which should “reinforce the confidence of foreign companies”.
From next month, only a negative test of less than 48 hours will be required to enter Chinese territory, said Monday evening the Health Commission, which acts as a ministry.
The country’s borders have remained almost completely closed to foreign nationals since 2020.
China stopped issuing tourist visas almost three years ago. A measure that will continue.
“The pandemic is not over yet,” a spokesperson for Chinese diplomacy, Wang Wenbin, defended on Tuesday.
“China will continue to adapt its visa policy,” assured the spokesperson.