An EgyptAir plane. File/EgyptAir
The new website has been launched experimentally to reduce waiting time for Egyptian and foreign passengers upon arrival at the Egyptian airports.
Passengers have to register at the website at least two days before starting their trip or otherwise fill the paper form upon arrival.
In a statement circulated by local media on Wednesday, the Egyptian flagship carrier said the launch of the new website is part of the state's efforts to streamline the arrival procedures for passengers.
The step would also ensure smooth movement inside airports and reduce crowds at airport halls, EgyptAir added.
Those who are not able to register at the website will be allowed to enter the country if they provide accredited COVID-19 vaccination certificates or negative coronavirus test results, the statement said.
Vaccination certificates have to show that at least 14 days have passed since the passenger received their second vaccine dose. Negative coronavirus test results must be for PCR or antigen tests taken in the 72 hours before arrival and having a QR code.
Egypt cancelled the COVID-related declaration forms in April after launching the Visit Egypt website.
Amid a major improvement in the coronavirus situation in the country, Egypt also cancelled exceptional COVID-focused disinfection of planes after each flight, with a return to normal sanitation procedures.
Egypt's daily COVID-19 infections have recently dropped to their lowest levels since the start of the pandemic, with the country recording a daily average of four coronavirus infections and two deaths over the past week (21-27 May).
Egypt's decision to cancel the mandatory declaration forms and exceptional COVID-19 focus plane disinfection come at a time when the country has been taking measures to support the tourism sector's recovery amid global challenges.
Egypt, which relies on tourism revenues as a vital source of foreign currency, received around 7.6 million tourists in 2021, an official told Al-Watan newspaper in April.
This is up from 3.7 million tourists who visited Egypt in 2020, the first year of the pandemic, and down from 13 million in 2019, according to Statista.
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