A COVID-19 travel advisory against “nonessential travel abroad” will be lifted from Thursday, according to Taiwan’s Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC).
The previous advisory discouraging nonessential travel to anywhere outside of Taiwan has been downgraded from a “warning” to an “alert” to coincide with the end of mandatory quarantine for all arrivals, the CECC said in a statement Wednesday.
The CECC said that the lifting of border control measures in other countries and increasing international travel meant that travelers were no longer significantly more likely to catch COVID-19 abroad.
However, the CECC said the disease is still spreading globally, with the more infectious Omicron BA.5 variant and its descendent sublineages being the dominant strain of the coronavirus.
One of the BA.5 sublineages, known as “BF.7,” has been behind a growing number of new infections in the United States since late August, according to data from the country’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The U.K. Health Security Agency also listed BF.7 among several variants of concern in a report dated Oct. 7, which said its model showed BF.7 could have a growth rate higher than BA.5.
With China having reported its first domestically transmitted BF.7 case on Sept. 28, CECC official Lo Yi-chun (羅一鈞) told reporters at a press briefing on Wednesday that Taiwan had only recorded three BF.7 cases between Aug. 5 and Sept. 15, involving travelers from the Netherlands, France, and the United States.
There have been no domestic BF.7 cases in Taiwan, Lo said.
Meanwhile, with the change in the travel advisory to “alert,” the CECC recommends people planning to travel abroad complete their vaccination against COVID-19 two weeks before their trips.
Travelers are also advised to visit travel clinics for a consultation with a doctor, and to maintain good hygiene, wear face masks, and avoid crowded places to protect themselves during their trips, the CECC said.
The change in travel advisory will only be about COVID-19, since Taiwan also lists several countries as “alert” for monkeypox, as well as infections of Zika and Novel Influenza A viruses.
While the government’s travel advisories are not binding, insurers in Taiwan often decide whether to sell a travel insurance plan based on these advisories.

Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel