SÃO PAULO, BRAZIL – The irony could not be greater. Brazil has an openly vaccine-critical president who already 2021 did not want to impose any covid requirements on tourists traveling to the country. And yet, even today, you can’t enter Brazil unvaccinated and without proof of full vaccination against SARS-CoV-2.
Summer vacation is underway in the Northern Hemisphere, with thousands of tourists seeking distant getaways after two years confined at home due to Covid-19.
“We had to show vaccination cards even before we showed our passports,” says Silvio Andrade, a Brazilian living with his family in the United States.
“For us it was no problem because we were all vaccinated, but for the many vaccine critics in the US, Brazil is not a vacation option this summer,” he tells The Rio Times.
Nowadays, you can enter completely free and without a vaccination card or PCR test in dozens of countries.
Many of these are typical tourist destinations that don’t want to have their business ruined further because of Covid. Brazil’s competitor Mexico is just as much among these countries as, for example, the Bahamas, the Dominican Republic, or Costa Rica. But also Greece, Spain, the U.S. or Portugal do not require a vaccination certificate for entry.
Brazil requires that all foreign nationals coming into the country show proof of vaccination before boarding flights. Not fully vaccinated Brazilians and foreigners residing in the country must present a negative PCR test taken no more than one day before boarding.
As for the possibility of lifting the current proof of vaccination entry restrictions, the country’s Health regulator Anvisa says it is not up to them.
“According to legal regulations, the alteration of these rules or the issuance of new rules at any time is the responsibility of the inter-ministerial group, with Anvisa being a technical advisory body responsible for inspecting Brazilian entry points,” Anvisa’s press service stated to The Rio Times.
SUPREME COURT RUINS IT FOR THE INDUSTRY
Back in December 2021, the Brazilian government had to follow Supreme Court Justice Luís Roberto Barroso’s decision to start demanding proof of vaccination from travelers coming to Brazil by air or land.
The government had been unwilling to demand proof of vaccination, in line with President Jair Bolsonaro’s position. But the Justice argued that the issue is urgent because the end of the year leads to increased travel, and Brazil could become an “anti-vaccine” destination.
The restrictions, however, are not seen as the sole reason hindering foreign tourism in Brazil.
“We believe that the requirement of a vaccination card is not an obstacle to the entry of more travelers to Brazil,” says Marta Teixeira de Freitas, president of ANBTR, an association of travel agencies.
According to Freitas, what is hindering the increase in the flow of foreign tourists coming into the country are the high prices of airline tickets, the recession facing many parts of the world, the war in Europe, and high fuel prices.
“People are looking for closer trips within their own country,” Freitas explains.
“American and European tourists will return to Brazil on a larger scale, with the implementation of a promotion policy focused on the country’s natural culture and beauty, as well as an increase in the air transport offers,” she says.
According to Freitas, in 2019, the year before the pandemic, Brazil received around 6.3 million tourists.
In 2021, with the easing of sanitary restrictions and the gradual return of international flights, Brazil registered a level of 60 percent of tourists compared to what was seen in 2019. The ABNTR official says the sector is optimistic about a recovery in 2024 when the world scenario is expected to improve.
“The perspective for the coming years is that this number will improve with the campaigns carried out by government agencies such as Embratur,” adds Freitas.
And although the ANBTR official says her members hope that this sanitary procedure will soon be revoked, “we believe that the decision has to be bilateral, if a country allows Brazilians to enter, the same should happen in Brazil. However, it is important to advance vaccination throughout the national territory so that Brazilians feel safe in receiving foreigners”.
Until vaccination proof requirements are lifted, the Brazilian Association of Airline Companies (ABEAR) says its member companies (GOL, LATAM Brasil, RIMA, ABAETÉ, VOEPASS, and Sideral Linhas Aéreas) will continue to ‘strictly comply with ANAC and ANVISA’s determinations’.