U.S. citizens are allowed to return from Russia and Belarus without a COVID-19 test

The U.S. federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has eliminated the requirement for U.S. citizens to take a coronavirus test when returning from Russia and Belarus. This is reported on the CDC website.

The medical regulator amended a decree dated December 2, 2021, that required all visitors to the U.S. to submit a negative coronavirus test prior to departure. The innovation allows citizens, residents and immigrant visa holders in the United States “to travel from Belarus and Russia to the United States without a prior test for COVID-19.”

The amendment was introduced amid “geopolitical tensions related to Ukraine,” according to a statement from the CDC. Earlier, the State Department added recommendations to Americans to refrain from traveling to Russia and Belarus and to leave these countries, mentioning that a Russian military operation is underway in Ukraine.