According to media reports, the Robert Koch Institute will be adding the United States and Israel to its high-risk list as of Sunday, August 15th, meaning each of those destinations will be subject to a travel warning from next week.

In addition to the United States and Israel, Montenegro and Vietnam could also be reclassified as high-risk categories from Sunday.

To allow German residents with a Turkish heritage to return from their summer visits, Turkey will join the high-risk list a few days later, on Tuesday evening. 

The news on the United States comes just days after a report by Reuters revealed that the United States government was planning to introduce new rules to make it easier for vaccinated travellers to visit the country.

According to reports, President Biden is considering a ‘vaccinated-only’ entry rule that could pave the way to lifting the months-long ban on European tourists. 

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• TRAVEL: Germany places 19 regions on ‘high risk’ list

Nineteen regions and countries have been upgraded since the Health Ministry introduced sweeping reforms to its travel rules at the start of August – including the scrapping of the ‘basic risk’ category and the rebranding of ‘high-incidence’ areas as ‘high risk’.

The high-risk category takes into account numerous factors as well as the 7-day incidence as infections per 100,000 people to determine whether a destination would be particularly risky for travellers. 

Quarantine for the unvaccinated 

Travellers returning from high-risk areas to Germany are subject to a ten-day quarantine that can be ended after five days with a negative test.

Vaccinated travellers or those who have recently recovered from Covid don’t have to quarantine if they can show proof of vaccination or recovery. 

READ ALSO: Five things to know about Germany’s new Covid testing rules

Everyone entering from a high-risk area must also register beforehand on the Digital Entry Portal and show proof of vaccination, recovery of a negative test, regardless of whether they travel by train, car or plane. 

Since high-risk areas are also subject to a travel warning, the decision could have an impact on the validity of travel insurance if tourists choose to visit these countries.