Today (May 17), the website of the Chinese Embassy in the U.S. published a notice further simplifying the requirements for taking a flight back to China. The main changes are:
- The 7-day pre-departure nucleic acid testing requirement has been canceled.
- The self-health monitoring requirement has been canceled, though travelers are encouraged to voluntarily monitor their health before departure.
- For all passengers, whether vaccinated with inactivated vaccines, non-inactivated vaccines, or unvaccinated, the testing requirement within 48 hours before departure has been changed to “double PCR tests,” and any IgM antibody testing is no longer required. For the “double PCR tests,” different labs must still be used, and one of the tests must be taken within 24 hours before boarding.
The new rules will take effect on May 20.
In other words, if you are flying to mainland China after that, you only need to arrive at your departure city 2 days in advance and complete two PCR tests, one of which must be within 24 hours before departure, to obtain the blue health code. Then, after taking one more antigen test (within 12 hours before departure), you can board the plane. This is very good news for people returning to China. Although the biggest challenge is still finding a ticket, not having to travel to the departure city far in advance can save a substantial amount on hotels and daily expenses.