Coronavirus: China to ban most foreign arrivals in effort to block contagion’s spread

• Suspension order is set to take effect at midnight on Friday
• Foreign ministry makes some exceptions, including for transit passengers

Robert Delaney source : South China Morning Post

Published: 11:50pm, 26 Mar, 2020

China will ban most foreigners from entering the country starting at midnight on Friday in an effort to block the spread of the coronavirus through imported cases.

Entry visas issued to foreigners will be suspended as an “interim measure”, according to a statement late on Thursday by the country’s foreign ministry.

“In view of the rapid spread of the new coronavirus epidemic worldwide, China has decided to temporarily suspend entry of foreigners with currently valid visas and residence permits in China,” the ministry said.

“This is an interim measure that China has to take in order to respond to the current epidemic situation, with reference to the practice of many countries,” it added. “The Chinese side will adjust the above measures according to the epidemic situation through separate announcements.”

Coronavirus: ban on non-residents leaves Hong Kong airport virtually deserted

While the global pandemic originated in China months ago, the epicentre has shifted to other regions of the world, hitting southern Europe and some of the biggest US cities hard.

Chinese authorities implemented unprecedented lockdown measures in dozens of cities to curb the spread of Covid-19, the disease caused by the virus, starting in late January. Other countries now struggling to bring the epidemic under control have relied more on shutting non-essential businesses and social distancing guidance.

Chinese airlines record US$3 billion loss in February as virus hits travel

12 Mar 2020

China had only 233 new cases in the week ended March 23, according to government data, while new cases outside of China in the same period were more than 166,000. That compares with 23,076 cases in China and 197 elsewhere in the first week of February.

Foreigners, however, account for a small minority of Covid-19 cases among incoming passengers, according to a report by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV. Among infected passengers entering China, 90 per cent were Chinese nationals, CCTV said. Of that group, 40 per cent were students studying overseas.