In view of the sharp increase in the number of infections caused by the more contagious Delta variant, Portugal and Russia will be considered virus variant areas from next Tuesday.
The federal government has classified Portugal and Russia as virus variant areas, for which particularly strict rules apply when re-entering Germany. The classification applies from Tuesday at midnight, as the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) announced on Friday evening. According to the information, the classification of Portugal is initially for two weeks, but an extension is possible.
In Portugal and Russia, the number of corona infections has recently risen sharply again. The Portuguese capital Lisbon was largely cordoned off due to the strong spread of the highly contagious Delta variant of the corona virus, in Russia the metropolises Moscow and St. Petersburg are particularly badly affected.
Countries or regions in which more contagious variants of the coronavirus are widespread are classified as virus variant areas. In the other risk areas, the RKI differentiates between simple risk areas with an increased risk of infection and high-incidence areas in which the number of cases and the risk of infection are particularly high.
Strict requirements after entry from virus variant areas
The RKI did not identify new high incidence areas on Friday. The Zadar region in Croatia as well as Fiji and Rwanda are now considered to be new low-risk areas. Denmark, Latvia, Luxembourg, Slovenia and the Netherlands are no longer considered risk areas with the exception of the overseas areas Aruba and Sint Maarten. In Croatia, the Varazdin region is no longer classified as a risk area, in Sweden only the provinces Kronoberg, Norrbotten and Värmland are considered risk areas.
For entries from all corona risk areas, legal requirements for controls, testing and quarantine obligations apply. In the case of high incidence areas and virus variant areas, these requirements are particularly strict.
