Unvaccinated passengers need to show a negative PCR test conducted within 48 hours of departure…

From Saturday February 26, fully vaccinated travellers will no longer have to show a negative PCR test to travel to the UAE, the National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority (NCEMA) has announced.

Instead, arrivals will only have to show their vaccine certificates complete with a valid QR code that prove they have been fully vaccinated with a UAE-approved vaccine.


Passengers who are unvaccinated will need to show a valid PCR test taken within 48 hours, according to the NCEMA Tweet, or show prove that they have recovered from Covid-19 within the last month.

The announcement was made on Twitter alongside a slew of new relaxations of Covid-19 rules in the UAE, which will also see masks made optional in open spaces across the emirates from Saturday February 26. From this weekend, residents that come into contact with a positive Covid case will no longer have to isolate. Instead, close contact cases will only have to undergo two PCR tests at least 48 hours apart within a five-day period.

Restaurants will also be allowed to go back to full capacity, and social distancing requirements have also been removed from activites within the economic and tourism sectors.

And in an easing of rules for those travelling between Abu Dhabi and the rest of the emirates,Abu Dhabi’s Emergency, Crisis and Disasters Committee announced that Green Pass would no longer be mandatory to enter the UAE capital from Monday February 28. Green Pass is still required to enter public spaces in the city.

Image: Getty