China Cuts Quarantine Time in Half, Moving Toward Further Easing in Covid Restrictions

The Chinese authorities on Tuesday announced that the government cut the quarantine period for international travelers, marking a major step toward further easing Covid-19 measures and full reopening for the country.

China has been mostly cut off from the world for more than two years as the country is moving cautiously in controlling the spread of Covid-19 infection following its zero-Covid policy.

Now, Beijing will halve its Covid-19 quarantine period for visitors from overseas to seven days at a centralized facility, such as a hotel, and another three days monitoring at home before being able to venture out, according to the announcement from the National Health Commission on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the quarantine measures also apply to those that have close contacts with confirmed Covid-19 cases by staying at a centralized facility for seven days and another three at home.

Covid-19 cases in China had been dropping from nearly 30,000 cases per day in April, the highest since the first outbreak in late 2019, to a 7-day average of 125 cases as of June 27, 2022.

Restrictions in China have been one of the main focus for global traders considering the country as the main exports and imports routes, while being the world’s second largest economy behind the United States of America.