From March 19 until April 15 a repeated Covid-19 test required upon entering Latvia
On March 19, 2021 amendments to the regulation on entry into Latvia have entered into force determining that, if within the last 14 days a person has stayed in a country other than a country of the European Union and European Economic Area, the Swiss Confederation or the United Kingdom, such person:
- shall, 10 days after leaving the abovementioned country, ensure self-isolation at his or her place of residence or in a Latvian tourist accommodation establishment individually chosen from the list of tourist accommodation establishments administered by the Investment and Development Agency of Latvia for which the required safety protocols have been developed (information about self-isolation, as well as other epidemiological safety requirements is available on the webpage of the Centre for Disease Prevention and Control of Latvia).
- shall, upon entering Latvia, immediately undergo the test at the nearest testing site at his or her own expense and, if it is not possible, indicate such information in the information system on the website Covidpass.lv and immediately go to any of the tourist accommodation establishments specified in the list of tourist accommodation establishments administered by the Investment and Development Agency of Latvia, and also undergo the test at his or her own expense as soon as possible:
- if the test result is negative - the person goes to his or her place of residence to ensure self-isolation and complies with all self-isolation requirements;
- if the person does not undergo the test or if the test result is positive - the person shall immediately isolate in any of the tourist accommodation establishments specified in the list of tourist accommodation establishments administered by the Investment and Development Agency of Latvia by complying with all requirements, and inform the tourist accommodation establishment of the status of a traveler from third countries without the test or with a positive test result;
- the tourist accommodation establishment has an obligation to inform the State Police if the person does not stay overnight in the tourist accommodation establishment or regarding his or her prolonged absence from it during the period of isolation;
- the expenses for the stay of a person in the tourist accommodation establishment during the period of isolation or self-isolation shall be covered from the resources of the person irrespective of the test results.
Information about exceptions from the repeated test requirement upon entering Latvia is available in the Cabinet of Ministers Regulation No. 360, adopted June 9, 2020, Paragraph 56.46: Epidemiological Safety Measures for the Containment of the Spread of COVID-19 Infection .
The requirement to perform a repeated test upon entering Latvia is in force until April 15, 2021.
We would like to remind that as of January 25, 2021 a PCR (polymerase chain reaction) negative Covid-19 test results is required for entry into Latvia. The test must be performed no earlier than 72 hours before boarding the aircraft that will be entering Latvia. Proof of a negative COVID-19 PCR test result or other medical document that confirms that the person is not infectious (for example, a medical certificate, antibody certificate) must be presented to the airline. If this is not done, the passenger will be denied boarding to Latvia. Children under the age of 11 are exempted from this Covid-19 testing requirement. For other exceptions please see the Cabinet of Ministers Regulation No. 360, adopted June 9, 2020, Paragraph 354: Epidemiological Safety Measures for the Containment of the Spread of COVID-19 Infection . We would like to inform that the earlier exception of not requiring a negative Covid-19 test for individuals who have been vaccinated against Covid-19 has been removed from the list of exemptions.
In addition, prior to entering Latvia, the QR code confirming that the Covidpass.lv form has been completed must be shown.
We would like to remind that travel to Latvia from the United States is allowed only for restricted categories – mainly for nationals of Latvia and their family members. A complete list of categories of those who are allowed to enter Latvia is listed under Paragraph 37 of the Cabinet of Ministers Regulation No.360: Epidemiological Safety Measures for the Containment of the Spread of COVID-19 Infection .