Muscat: Football fans in Oman and around the world heaved a sigh of relief after Qatar relaxed its COVID-19 restrictions and announced a revised travel and return policy for the forthcoming FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.
The new policy effective from November 1 will allow visitors to enter Qatar without a negative Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test certificate or a negative Rapid Antigen Test result.
The World Cup, which will be held from November 20 to December 18, is the first major sporting event open to the public since the start of the pandemic in 2020. It is expected that more than a million visitors will travel to the Gulf emirate for the tournament.
Qatar government had initially announced that all travelers arriving to the country must bring a PCR test certificate with a negative result for 48 hours or a Rapid Antigen Test certificate valid for 24 hours from the scheduled flight to Qatar. Only minors upto the age of five were exempted.
All GCC nationals and residents were asked to download Ehteraz health application mobile app and activate it on their mobile phones using a local or international SIM card though they were excluded from the pre-entry online registration. All other visitors had to also download the mobile app and activate it and register it online three days before the arrival.
With the stringent COVID test rules in place, football fans were worried and had expressed concerns despite holding the Hayya card.
However, the Ministry of Public Health of Qatar, recently announced the relaxations in the travel policy, which will be effective from Tuesday.
The advisory added that travelers must adhere to the measures in place in Qatar to limit the spread of COVID-19 at all times. It added that quarantine is no longer mandatory for all travelers arriving from abroad. However, travelers who test positive for COVID-19 after arriving in Qatar must undergo self-isolation measures in accordance with the procedures followed in the country.
The government also removed the requirement for visitors and people living in Qatar to download Ehteraz and show proof of their COVID-free status to enter indoor spaces across the country. Instead, the app will only be needed to enter health care facilities.
According to media reports, Argentina with 35,000 fans, is expected to have the most number of fans in Qatar.
The new measures in Qatar from November 1 will also close access to anyone (except nationals and residents) who does not have a Hayya card, the mandatory document given to those who have tickets for the stadiums, their guests, players, media, World Cup workers and authorities.
