Effective January 22, 2022 All Non-U. S. Travelers Entering U.S. Land Ports of Entry and Ferry Terminals Required to Be Fully Vaccinated, Says DHS
By: Ricardo E. Calderon, Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc., Copyright 2022
The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced that “effective Saturday, January 22, 2022, all non-U.S. individuals seeking to enter the United States via land ports of entry and ferry terminals at the U.S.-Mexico and U.S.-Canada borders to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 and provide related proof of vaccination, as COVID-19 cases continue to rise nationwide.”
According to DHS, “these restrictions will apply to non-U.S. individuals who are traveling for both essential and non-essential reasons. They will not apply to U.S. citizens, Lawful Permanent Residents, or U.S. Nationals.”
Effective February 22, 2022, inbound non-U.S. Individual travelers (non-U.S. citizens who are neither U.S. nationals nor lawful permanent residents) can seek to enter the United States via a land port of entry (POE) or ferry terminal if they are fully vaccinated and have appropriate documentation.
Non-U.S. individuals traveling to the United States via land ports of entry or ferry terminals, whether for essential or non-essential reasons, must: 1) verbally attest to their COVID-19 vaccination status; 2) provide proof of a CDC-approved COVID-19 vaccination, as outlined on the CDC website; 3) present a valid Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI)-compliant document, such as a valid passport, Trusted Traveler Program Card, or Enhanced Tribal Card; 4) be prepared to present any other relevant documents requested by a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer during a border inspection; and 5) meet all other existing requirements for entry not related to COVID-19.
COVID-19 testing is not required for entry via a land or ferry port of entry, but rather full vaccination is required as outlined above.
Children under 18 years of age will be excepted from the vaccination requirement at land and ferry ports of entry.
Individuals are considered fully vaccinated if:
1. 2 weeks (14 days) after your dose of an accepted single-dose COVID-19 vaccine (eg. Johnson & Johnson single dose vaccine);
2. 2 weeks (14 days) after your second dose of an accepted 2 dose-series vaccine;
3. 2 weeks (14 days) after your received the full series of an accepted COVID-19 vaccine (not placebo) in a clinical trial;
4. 2 weeks (14 days) after you received the full series of a Novavax (or Covovax) COVID-19 vaccine (not placebo) in a phase 3 clinical trial; or
5. 2 weeks (14 days) after you received 2 doses of any “mix-and-match” combination of accepted COVID-19 vaccines administered at least 17 days apart.
The fully-vaccinated requirement applies to both essential and non-essential travelers who are not U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents or U.S. nationals entering the U.S. through a land or ferry terminal port of entry.
Essential travel includes travel to attend educational institutions, travel to work in the United States, travel for emergency response and public health purposes, and travel for lawful cross-border trade such as commercial truckers, bus drivers, and railroad or ferry operators.
U. S. Customs and Border Protection anticipates that these requirements will cause wait times to cross into the United States may increase at land and ferry ports of entry. Travelers are encouraged to give themselves more time when planning on crossing into the United States via a land and ferry ports of entry.
The following individuals are exempt from these full vaccination requirements:
1. U.S. Citizens, Lawful Permanent Residents, and U.S. Nationals;
2. Children under the age of 18 years;
3. Certain categories of individuals on diplomatic or official foreign government travel;
4. Certain participants in certain COVID-19 vaccine trials;
5. Individuals with medical contraindications to receiving a COVID-19 vaccine;
6. Individuals issued a humanitarian or emergency exception by the Secretary of Homeland Security;
7. Members of the U.S. Armed Forces or their spouses or children under 18 years of age; and
8. Individuals whose entry would be in the U. S. national interest as determined by the Secretary of Homeland Security.
For more information, please go to the DHS website: www.dhs.gov.
