Germany to add Dutch to COVID high-risk list
Germany will place the Netherlands among countries classified as high-risk zones due to elevated numbers of COVID-19 cases, Berlin's infectious disease agency announced Sunday.
Beginning Tuesday at midnight, travellers from the Netherlands will have to present a negative virus test to enter Germany, according to the Robert Koch Institute.
A quarantine period of 10 days must also be observed with the possibility of halting it after five days on presentation of a negative test.
There will be exceptions for people commuting between the neighbouring countries for work.
Germany, where concern has mounted over a third wave of the pandemic, has already classified neighbouring France, the Czech Republic and Poland as high-risk zones.
The Netherlands borders Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany's most populous state with 18 million people.
On March 23, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced an extension of coronavirus restrictions until April 20 with infections on the rise.
The Netherlands, which has a population of over 17 million, has recorded more than 1.2 million virus cases and over 16,000 deaths linked to the disease.
© 2021 AFP
