The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that national authorities continue to apply a risk-based approach when implementing measures related to COVID-19 and international travel while respecting the dignity, human rights and fundamental freedoms of travellers.
On 2 July 2021, WHO updated its international travel risk-based guidance and published two guidance documents, Policy considerations for implementing a risk-based approach to international travel in the context of COVID-19 and its corresponding annex, Technical considerations for implementing a risk-based approach to international travel in the context of COVID-19. These two documents are updates to the original interim guidance document published on 16 December 2020, Considerations for implementing a risk-based approach to international travel in the context of COVID-19.
This guidance can support countries in implementing and calibrating their international travel-related measures, adapted to their specific epidemiological, health system and socioeconomic context, to ensure they are proportionate to the public health risk. The key updates are additional considerations to include SARS-CoV-2 Variants of Concern (VOC) and Variants of Interest (VOI) in the risk assessment, and COVID-19 vaccination in the risk management framework, as well as updated evidence on the effectiveness and impact of several risk mitigation measures.
Previous versions
To view a previous (now outdated version) of this guidance and its corresponding annex, the risk assessment tool, please see the links below:
First version, published 16 December 2020 under the title “Considerations for implementing a risk-based approach to international travel in the context of COVID-19.”
The accompanying annex, Risk assessment tool to inform mitigation measures for international travel in the context of COVID-19, also published on 16 December 2020, provides detailed guidance on how to implement risk mitigation measures by conducting a risk assessment using a mixed-methods approach.