Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, Nov.12: The Covishield vaccine by the Serum Institute of India has been recognised as a Covid-19 vaccination for entrance into Saudi Arabia. Travelers who are completely vaccinated with Saudi-approved vaccines can enter the country without having to go through institutional quarantine, according to a statement from the Saudi Tourism Authority.
Pfizer BioNTech, Comirnaty, Oxford AstraZeneca, SK Bioscience, Vaxzevria, Moderna, Spikevax, and Johnson & Johnson are among the eight additional vaccines that have been approved.
The approval of Covishield is a positive development as Saudi Arabia prepares to open its borders to Indian tourists. While entry into Saudi Arabia is still temporarily suspended for travellers coming or passing through India in the 14 days prior to their arrival, the approval of Covishield is a positive development as the country prepares to open its borders to Indian tourists.
“Indian travellers who have spent 14 days in a country that is not on the list of countries where entry is temporarily suspended immediately before entering Saudi are also permitted as long as they are fully immunized,” it said, adding that a negative PCR test conducted no more than 72 hours before departure is a mandatory requirement in all cases.
Saudi Arabia had previously allowed fully-vaccinated Indian nationals to return without being quarantined in a third country if certain requirements were met.
The country announced in July that citizens travelling to nations on the kingdom’s ‘red list,’ which includes India, would face a three-year travel restriction as part of its attempts to combat the spread of coronavirus and its new forms.
