MINISTRY OF HEALTH
THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM
Independence - Freedom – Happiness
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No. 10688/BYT-MT
Re: COVID-19 prevention and control associated with entrants Hanoi, December 16, 2021

To: - Ministries, Ministerial-level agencies, Governmental agencies;
- People's Committees of provinces/central-affiliated cities;

Currently (as of December 15, 2021), Vietnam has reached high vaccination rate for COVID-19 (96.4 per cent of the people aged 18 years and above has received one dose while 76.5 per cent are double vaccinated). The Prime Minister directs the health authorities to, no later than December 31, 2021, complete administering two doses of vaccines to 100 per cent of people aged 18 years and above basically, and speed up the vaccination progress for children.

In furtherance of Resolution No. 128/NQ-CP dated October 11, 2021 of the Government on interim guidance for 'Safe and flexible adaptation to and effective control of the COVID-19 pandemic'; Official Dispatch No. 7581/VPCP-KGVX dated October 19, 2021 of the Government Office notifying the direction of Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam; Official Letter No. 7937/VPCP-QHQT dated October 29, 2021 of the Office of the Government on the application of the 'vaccine passport' and measures to facilitate the entry for foreign experts to serve the economic development target; Notice No. 334/TB-VPCP dated December 10, 2021 of the Government Office announcing the conclusion of Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh on the plan to resume commercial and international flights; the Ministry of Health (Standing Body of the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control) guides the implementation of COVID-19 prevention and control measures (hereinafter referred to as COVID-19 measures) for entrants to Vietnam (except for those entering Vietnam for short-term business trips and other entry cases as prescribed by the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control and the Ministry of Health or under a bilateral cooperation agreement) as follows:

1. General requirements for entrants

- The entrant must obtain proof of negative SARS-CoV-2 test result prior to entry1 (except for children under 2 years of age).

- The entrant must make a health declaration before entry; upon entry into Vietnam, install and use PC-COVID application (a health declaration application) for filling in health declarations and monitoring health as per Vietnamese regulations (the installation of this application is only on a recommended basis for diplomats and entrants on official duties).

- If the entrants who are Vietnamese citizens, overseas Vietnamese and their immediate relatives (spouses, children) have neither been vaccinated nor been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, they can receive free vaccination during their quarantine period (if they meet full requirements).

- For delegations entering Vietnam at the invitation of senior leaders: follow the scheme to welcome the delegation.

- The costs incurred in testing, quarantine, examination and treatment, and relevant costs (if any) in prevention and control of COVID-19 shall be covered in accordance with Resolution No. 16/NQ-CP dated February 8, 2021 of the Government on costs of quarantine, examination and treatment and certain particular allowances in COVID-19 prevention and control.

2. Specific requirements
2.1. For entrants who have been fully vaccinated or recovered from COVID-192

- During the first three days upon entry: they must self monitor their health at the places of residence or accommodation (houses, hotels, hostels, resorts, head offices of representative bodies, dormitories, guest houses of business establishments, etc.); and must not make direct contact with people around or leave the places of residence or accommodation.

- Take a RT-PCR test for SARS-CoV-2 on the third day of stay upon entry. If the result returns negative, the entrant shall do a follow-up medical self-observation for 14 days since the date of entry; if the result shows positive, further actions shall be taken as prescribed.

2.2. For entrants who have not been vaccinated or fully vaccinated

- Upon entry, they must quarantine at the place of residence/accommodation for 7 days since the date of entry; take RT-PCR tests for SARS-CoV-2 on the third day and the seventh day. If the result returns negative, they shall do a follow-up medical self-observation for 14 days; if the result shows positive, further actions shall be taken as prescribed.
- For entrants who are under 18 years old (hereinafter referred to as children) or above 65 years old (hereinafter referred to as senior persons), pregnant women, or people having underlying health conditions (without requiring care or observation of health facilities), they could quarantine along with their parents or caregivers (hereinafter referred to as caregivers). The caregivers must be fully vaccinated or have recovered from COVID-19 and sign a commitment document giving their voluntary willingness to quarantine with another person after having been informed of the risks of virus transmission. They will also be subject to the same stringent testing regimes and COVID-19 prevention and control measures expected of entrants.

3. Other requirements

a) Requirements for transport of entrants from the border checkpoint to the place of residence/accommodation

- For entrants: subject to the 5K rules during the movement from the border checkpoint to the place of residence/accommodation.

- For drivers of vehicles that transport entrants; limit stopping and parking along the road; in case special/emergency cases require stop and parking along the road, safety measures must be taken to prevent and control the COVID-19 pandemic.
b) Requirements for quarantine at places of residence/accommodation mentioned in Section 2.2 of this Official Dispatch: comply with Official Dispatch No. 5599/BYT-MT dated July 14, 2021 of the Ministry of Health on reduction in quarantine period, pilot home quarantine for F1 individuals, management and treatment of COVID-19 patients, in case the place of residence/accommodation does not meet the requirements for home quarantine, the quarantined person must undergo centralized quarantine at a hotel or other centralized quarantine facility (according to local regulations) according to the quarantine period corresponding to each entity mentioned in this Official Dispatch.

c) Requirements during health monitoring period: always fully comply with 5K rules (wear masks, make health declarations, disinfect hands regularly, do not go to crowded places, do not gather); in case there are signs of cough, fever, difficulty breathing, sore throat, etc., immediately report to local health authorities for handling according to regulations.

d) In addition to compliance with the requirements stated in this Official Dispatch, the entrant must comply with the regulations on prevention and control of the COVID-19 pandemic stated in other relevant documents.

dd) Encourage the entrant to do a COVID-19 rapid antigen self-test on the first day from the date of entry; if the test result returns positive, immediately report it to the local health authority for handling according to regulations.

4. Checking and certifying COVID-19 vaccination certificate, COVID-19 recovery certificate

- Regarding the inspection and recognition of the foreign COVID-19 vaccination certificate or COVID-19 recovery certificate (or the vaccine passport) shall comply with the guidance of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

- Regarding the inspection and recognition of the Vietnamese COVID-19 vaccination certificate or COVID-19 recovery certificate shall comply with the guidance of the Ministry of Health.

5. Request provincial People's Committees, ministries and central authorities to direct the implementation of the contents mentioned in this Official Dispatch; ensure that the management and supervision of quarantine are strictly implemented, to prevent cross-infection and disease spread to the community.

6. This Official Dispatch supersedes Official Dispatch No. 6288/BYT-MT dated August 4, 2021 of the Ministry of Health on reduction in centralized quarantine period for COVID-19 fully-vaccinated entrants, Official Dispatch No. 5446/BYT-MT dated July 8, 2021, Official Dispatch No. 6670/BYT-MT dated August 16, 2021 of the Ministry of Health on quarantine for diplomatic missions, Official Dispatch No. 7020/BYT -MT dated August 25, 2021 of the Ministry of Health on quarantine for children. The quarantine duration and form shall be modified subject to the pandemic circumstances.

7. This Official Dispatch does not apply to those who entered Vietnam and have quarantined and done health monitoring as prescribed before the date on which this Official Dispatch is issued.

8. The measures for COVID-19 prevention and control for entrants under this Official Dispatch shall apply as of January 1, 2022.

The Ministry of Health (the Standing Body of the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control) requests the People's Committees of provinces, ministries and authorities to direct affiliates to implement the management, supervision of quarantine at the places of residence/accommodation, prevent cross infection and spread the disease to the community.

Yours sincerely./.

PP. MINISTER
DEPUTY MINISTER
Do Xuan Tuyen

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1 Obtain the negative SARS-CoV-2 test result (using PCR/RT-LAMP method) within 72 hours prior to the entry to Vietnam and being granted a certificate by the competent authority of the country where the test is performed.

2 (i) Have received full dose(s) of COVID-19 vaccine according to the instructions for each licensed vaccine (the last dose given within at least 14 days and not more than 12 months by the time of entry) and have a vaccination certification/vaccine passport approved by Vietnam (or legalized/certified by a competent authority if such certificate has not been approved for direct use in Vietnam) or (ii) Used to be infected with SARS-CoV-2 (with a certificate of positive test for SAR-COV-2 using RT-PCR method with individual sample not longer than 6 months by the time of entry) and have recovered from the disease ( have a certificate of recovery from COVID-19 or equivalent documents certifying that they have recovered from the disease, issued by a competent authority in the country/territory where they received the treatment).