Qatar has changed entry and transit requirements today (July 12, 2021), allowing travel to the country (more of that on a separate piece).
There is, however, a line on the released text that will undoubtedly cause a significant headache for transit passengers that now would require a negative PCR-RT test not administered more than 72 hours of arrival to Doha.
You can access Qatar’s page for entry requirements here.
Here’s what the state of Qatar says on its website:
All passengers traveling through the State of Qatar (Transit) must present a (PCR) test certificate before travelling, valid for 72 hours from arrival, and if another PCR test is needed for their next destination, the test can be conducted at Hamad International Airport for a fixed charge of Qrs. 300 per test.
Conclusion
This would be a crazy change, as many countries with negative PCR-RT test requirements in place, even for transit passengers, have removed them.
Many countries now accept complete vaccination as proof, or you can conduct a cheap and fast antigen test for arrival purposes instead of a PCR-RT one that Qatar refers in their text required for TRANSIT.
Suppose Qatar requires a PCR-RT test even from transit passengers. In that case, it makes flying on the airline, which had continued to fly throughout the pandemic, providing much-needed connectivity when others grounded their fleets for weeks or months, very challenging.
Could this be just an oversight or translation error from Arabic?
well, what if the flight is quite long. Supposely i test covid before leaving NY. Got result 2 days before departure flight. Then added that to the flight time, when arriving Doha it might be more than 72 hours. And what about the time zone different? if the paper said test date is Oct,1 and when arrive qatar time is faster like 7 hours and thus might cause the test to be invalid despite if they calculate the time different it s till 72 hours. What to do in this 2 cases?
Probably wouldn’t accept it.
Get the test done the day before the flight.
I would expect them to take the time zone difference into account, but then that would take common sense !
Silly new rule. Even for those of us fully vaccinated. I have a 2 day layover in NYC before I depart and my test will be administered in Mexico before I depart. Hopefully this silly rule will be gone next year. EDIT: I just figured I would have ~2 hours to spare if we arrive in DOH on time to connect.
Regardless if somebody is vaccinated, “to enter” Qatar and not be a transit passenger, you need to get a “Covid Antibody Test” upon arrival to see if the vaccination even worked. I agree with this 100%. People walking around talking about they are vaccinated, but have no antibodies whatsoever. But, even if you are vaccinated you still need to quarantine if you country is yellow or red.
Simply silly. What percentage of vaccinations don’t work? Even more silly for transit passengers.
It’s not about if the vaccines work. Many people don’t get immunity from them. People that take certain medications, and people that have autoimmune diseases even if they are under controlled. That’s why booster shots are probably coming. There’s actual research that came out this week that show older adults that are weak just don’t take up the vaccines to get immunity. And of course certain vaccines have a lower efficacy rate against more transmissible variants unfortnately.
You need to learn the difference between the words,”many” and “some”. Percentagewise,the number you’re referencing is very small. Not,”many”. “Some” is the correct word. Booster shots “may” be coming,If so,no big deal.
Can you please show the,”actual research” you referenced since I’m in the age group but not weak. Thanks.
Let me go find the chart. Hang tight.
The below study ended in the researchers saying “Research is also needed on how to enhance the immune response to vaccination in those at higher risk. ”
Here’s the report: scroll down for charts
https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.05.24.21257738v2.full.pdf
I don’t think more shots are going to help people with immune problems. Their immune system doesn’t recognize the vaccines even if they had 100 shots 😀 But, seriously, people that have Lupus, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Crohns disease and a lot of other will never have immunity. The drugs they take are basically anti-cancer drugs that suppress the immunity. They can’t stop taking those drugs for months waiting for a vaccine to possible work. That’s why immunocompromised folks need to always wear a mask and follow other precautions.
Here’s the current policy:
https://covid19.moph.gov.qa/EN/travel-and-return-policy/Pages/default.aspx
I linked to the page above. Should be the same tiles
Thanks. I didn’t see it when I first looked. I’m not going to Doha until the World Cup plays next year. But, I’m keeping tabs on their covid19 rules. I honestly don’t think anything will change with covid a year from now. Some countries are having it worse now than it was last winter.
The posters in the Qatar thread on Flyertalk are arguing that this is just a misunderstanding, and that no PCR test is needed for transit (unless it’s required at the destination). The PCR rule is apparently not in the TIMATIC yet, and I believe that is what really matters.
Please HeLp?
Do I need to fill ehteraz if only transiting? What are the exact requirements?
Please HeLp?
Do I need to fill ehteraz if only transiting? What are the exact requirements?