Hold off on International Travel
The OIS wants to remind the international community that we discourage international travel at this time. This has been the case since last February 2020 due to the pandemic (see: Important Updates from OIS – Coronavirus and Travel Ban). The continued impacts of traveling internationally for our international visitors is still great, even though some travel bans have been lifted. There could be new travel bans put into place by the new administration at any time. It is not just the U.S. administration that is placing travel bans, but other countries are doing the same, and with limited notice. An example of this type of situation would be traveling to Poland and there is a stop in the U.K. The U.K. could impose a travel ban from the U.S. and thereby causing a hiccup for the traveler.
Another reminder is that a good amount of the U.S. embassies and consulates are still only accepting emergency appointments. So, in the event that you travel and required to obtain a new visa stamp, unless you are eligible for a national interest exception (NIE), you may have to wait until the U.S. embassy or consulate is taking appointments.
While the OIS does not want to alarm our community and we will not hold you back from traveling, we want you to be aware that there is risk. However, we also understand that emergencies happen. If you are going to travel, please contact the OIS prior to leaving. This includes those international visitors that are sponsored by ECFMG. We encourage you to contact our office to let us know about your travel plans. ECFMG is also discouraging international travel as well.
Additional Resources:
- Foster LLC: Governments Continue to Warn Citizens Against International Travel
- Department of State: Negative COVID-19 Negative Test Required for Travel to United States Beginning January 26
- NAFSA: Coronavirus Critical Resources
- Previous OIS Pandemic Travel Related Blogs: