The United States will finally lift its 21-month-long Covid restrictions on travellers on Monday allowing fully vaccinated international visitors. This was a much-awaited decision as the US authorities have been buying time to finally open the country for foreign travellers. The restrictions stopped many Indians living in the US from coming to India as they would have been stuck in India with the US not allowing Indian travellers so far.

The restriction was imposed by then President Donald Trump in early 2020 when the pandemic just started and is finally being withdrawn after the world valiantly fought multiple waves of the pandemic.

Here is all you need to know

1. Only fully vaccinated travellers will be allowed to travel to the United States.

2. Still, the travellers will have to carry proof of negative coronavirus test before boarding the flight.

3. Passengers will need to show their vaccination status to the airlines which will match the name and the date of birth to confirm that no one can carry someone else’s vaccination certificate.

4. All FDA- and WHO-approved vaccines are recognised by the US authorities. And this includes India’s indigenous vaccine Covaxin as the vaccine has been given emergency use approval by the WHO.

5. The US will also reopen its land borders with Canada and Mexico for vaccinated people.

6. Allowing only fully vaccinated travellers are almost like issuing a vaccine passport and the condition will leave out people of many countries. The government said it will consider passengers from those countries if there is a humanitarian or emergency reason.