Brunei removes all countries from Travel Green List, including Singapore, due to Omicron threat
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN (XINHUA) - The Brunei government on Wednesday (Dec 29) announced updated guidelines on inbound and outbound travel to and from the country, temporarily removing all countries - including Singapore - from a Travel Green List.
The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said in a statement that taking into consideration the current Covid-19 situation, particularly the rise of cases in several countries and the threat posed by the Omicron variant, the Steering Committee for Covid-19 agreed to temporarily remove all countries from the Travel Green List.
"In this regard, there will be no countries placed in the Travel Green List from Jan 1, 2022," the PMO said.
The country said earlier this month that from Jan 1, 2022, citizens and residents of Brunei and foreign nationals who had received their Covid-19 vaccinations were permitted to exit the country for non-essential travel via air to countries on the Travel Green List, including Australia, China, Singapore and Britain.
But Britain was taken off the Travel Green List a week earlier, following the rapid spread of the new Omicron Covid-19 variant there.
According to the PMO, the newly updated guidelines require all travellers to undergo an RT-PCR test 48 hours before departure from their country. Foreigners who wish to enter Brunei for essential purposes must also obtain entry-travel approval.
In addition, all inbound travellers are required to undergo mandatory self-isolation at designated hotels and needed to undergo an Antigen Rapid Test upon arrival in the country, as well as an RT-PCR test on the fifth-day post-arrival.
Meanwhile, essential outbound travel is now only allowed for citizens and permanent residents of Brunei who have obtained exit-travel approval and received two doses of Covid-19 vaccination within 14 days to three months before departure, or for those who have received a booster dose.
As of Dec 28, 94.5 per cent of Brunei's population had received at least one dose of Covid-19 vaccines, while 93.2 per cent had completed their vaccination schedule of two doses and 17.9 per cent had received three doses.
The country reported four new confirmed cases of Covid-19 on Wednesday, taking its total tally to 15,465.
According to Brunei's Ministry of Health, the newly recorded cases included three local infections and one imported case.
A total of 100 active cases are still being treated and monitored in Brunei and 100 patients have died in the country.
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