Will an effective coronavirus vaccine boost international travel?

Will an effective coronavirus vaccine boost international travel?

News of effective vaccines against coronavirus being rolled out has raised hopes that international travel will soon go back to normal, or at least the “new normal”.

This comes in as 25 countries have already signed up to the CommonPass, or the ‘digital health passport', an initiative aimed at creating an aligned and common international standard for flight passengers to demonstrate they do not have coronavirus.

Until the vaccine is in wider circulation, coronavirus testing and quarantine measures remain critical components in facilitating international travel.

Anir Chatterji, Middle East immigration leader at PwC, talks to Arabian Business about how the provision of effective vaccines will impact international travel and whether it will put an end to quarantining and testing.

Chatterji also addresses the mechanisms of the CommonPass and what it means for global travellers.

VIDEO

AB: Does the vaccine mean travel will resume in 2021?

AC: Hopefully, although it's likely to be a few months yet before the vaccine is in circulation.

It is, however, anticipated that international travel will start to resume to a greater extent by spring 2021, as travel restrictions ease in direct response to vaccination access.

Confidence in international travel will also be central to the extent of international travel we can expect to see