The Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) has installed a digital token system at Islamabad International Airport for conducting rapid Covid-19 test for Category-C countries inbound passengers.

https://twitter.com/official_pcaa/status/1361561675795738628  

The aviation regulator said approximately 1,000 passengers are arriving daily from the UK, South Africa, Brazil, Portugal and Netherlands at the Islamabad Airport. 

Recently, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) had extended a travel ban on passengers arriving from the United Kingdom (UK) on passports other than Pakistan’s and updated its C category for international travel.

The new standard operating procedures (SOPs) had been issued by the Director Air Transport department of CAA according to which category C international passengers now have to show Covid-19 report upon arrival and they will undergo another Covid-19 test in Pakistan.

The CAA had added six more countries to the C category list. South Africa, the UK, Portugal, Ireland and Brazil were the new countries included in category C.

It had notified the new categories, A & B, for international travels wherein 23 countries now qualify in the former category which means people travelling to Pakistan from them will not have to take the mandatory pre-boarding Covid test.

China, Saudi Arabia, New Zealand, and Australia are among the A-category countries according to CAA. However, those coming from countries in the B travel category will have to make sure a negative Covid-19 PCR report at maximum of 90 hours prior to boarding.

The rest of Covid SOPs will remain the same and their implementation will be mandatory, CAA said. The new travel restrictions will remain in effect until February 28, 2021.