The guidelines for the reopening of Beirut International Airport have been announced People will be allowed into Lebanon in line with the rules and regulations issued by the country’s General Security. Lebanese, Arab and foreign nationals, diplomats and domestic workers must be accompanied by a sponsor. Palestinians with a Palestinian refugee travel document issued by the Lebanese authorities will also be allowed in. Syrians with connecting flights will not be allowed in because the country’s border with Syria is currently closed. Passengers travelling to Lebanon from countries which perform PCR tests will have to take a test at a certified laboratory by local authorities 96 hours before they are due to leave and show the result at check-in before going to immigration. Passengers with positive Coronavirus tests will not be allowed to board. When they arrive, another PCR test will be done and airlines will have to pay for this. The passenger will be advised of the test result within 24 hrs. This will apply to passengers from Amman, Baghdad, Basra, Najaf, Cairo, Erbil, Abu Dhabi, Dammam, Dubai, Jeddah- Medina, Riyadh, Athens, Brussels, Frankfurt, Geneva, Istanbul, Larnaca, London, Paris, Accra and Lagos. Passengers who travelled out of Lebanon and are returning within a week are exempt from the PCR test requirement at their departure station. Passengers with connecting flights can board a flight from PCR countries without carrying out a PCR test before leaving. Passengers arriving from non-PCR countries will have to carry out a PCR test on arrival at Beirut International Airport and the airline will have to pay the cost of the test. Passengers will have to take a second test 72 hours after they arrive at accredited laboratories as advised by health authorities and passengers will have to pay the costs of this. This will apply to passengers from Doha, Kuwait, Copenhagen, Yerevan, Milan, Rome and Abidjan. Any passengers who test positive for Coronavirus will have to comply with the directives of the Public Health Ministry until they recover in line with the appropriate anti-Coronavirus measures. Passengers who show symptoms of illness including Coronavirus, will not be allowed to board flights. They will have to fill out health declaration forms at https://arcg.is/0GaDnG before leaving. They must also an insurance policy which is valid for the duration of their stay in Lebanon and covers all treatment costs for Coronavirus in Lebanon. Economy class passengers cannot take their hand luggage on the flight with them. Hey can be checked in for free provided it does not exceed 10kg. Limited items like ladies’ handbags, laptops, valuables, electronics and medication are exempt. Business class passengers can take hand luggage on flights with them provided they are tagged with a cabin baggage label. All passengers have to wear face masks and carry hand sanitiser with them. Passengers must also carry enough face masks for the duration of their flights with them and masks must be replaced every four hours. Passengers with medical conditions, infants and children under six are exempt from wearing a face mask. They should only use hand sanitiser for themselves and they are responsible for complying with all of the laws, regulations and travel requirements including the entry and exit rules from countries flown from and to. Full story
