FPOH adds more European countries to the Quarantine list

On Tuesday, August 18^th, the Federal Office for Public Health (BAG) added 13 countries to the list of areas with an increased risk of infection, including 8 countries within Europe.
Returnees from these destinations will now have to go into quarantine.

The countries in Europe that have been added to the list for arrivals from 20^th August are:
Albania, Andorra, Belgium, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Malta, Monaco, and Spain including the Balearic Islands (Majorca, Minorca, Ibiza), but not the Canary Islands.

European countries already on the list include: Armenia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Kosovo, Luxembourg, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Romania,

The following countries have also been added to the list from 20^th August:
Aruba, Belize, Guam, India and Namibia.

The following countries have now been removed from the quarantine obligation from 20^th August:
Equatorial Guinea, São Tomé and Príncipe, Saudi Arabia, Serbia and Singapore.

Which countries are classified as risk areas?
The list of the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) with states and territories for which there is a quarantine obligation now includes 53 countries from Thursday 20^th August 2020.

What should I do if I travel back to Switzerland from a risk area?
Anyone who has been in one of the affected areas in the last 14 days before entering Switzerland must immediately and directly go to their own apartment or some other accommodation (hotel, apartment). You must contact the competent cantonal authority within two days (contact details on bag.admin.ch/einreise), and the instructions of this authority must be followed. You are not allowed to leave your accommodation for ten days after your arrival. Anyone developing symptoms that indicate corona virus must contact a doctor immediately. The doctor must be informed that you are in quarantine.

Signs for travellers at Zurich Airport (21 June 2020)

How do I have to behave in quarantine?
Social contacts must be avoided in quarantine. Visitors may not be received. If all the people living in the household are in quarantine, you should have the purchases delivered or carried out by friends, neighbours or relatives, and the deliveries should be placed in front of the apartment door.

If you live with other people in the same household who are not under quarantine, you should set up in a room with a closed door and also take your meals there. When leaving the room, a distance of 1.5 metres from the other residents must be observed. Shared sanitary facilities (WC, shower, sink) or household items (dishes, kitchen utensils) must be cleaned immediately after use. These distance and hygiene instructions do not apply if all members of the same household are quarantined. Those who are symptom-free after ten days may leave their accommodation in consultation with the cantonal authority.

Who is subject to quarantine?
In principle, the quarantine obligation applies to all persons entering Switzerland from a risk area, including children. Excluded are persons whose work is indispensable for the functioning of health care or public safety. For these persons, it is advisable to contact their employer and the competent cantonal authorities. The quarantine obligation does not apply to truck drivers or aircraft crews, nor to persons who are only in Switzerland for transit without a stopover.

How is the quarantine checked?
Enforcement of the quarantine obligation is the responsibility of the competent cantonal authorities. In most cases, they will check whether the persons arriving from high-risk areas are complying with the requirements by means of regular telephone calls. If they have any doubts, they can also send the police over. Anyone caught violating the quarantine obligation can be fined up to CHF 10,000.

Anyone who does not report to the competent authorities on entering Switzerland after being in a risk area will also face trouble: the authorities will track down persons who have not registered by means of spot checks of the passenger lists of flights and bus operators as well as other indications. They too will face a fine of up to CHF 10,000.

What must I do if my travel destination is declared to be a risk area during my holiday stay?
The decisive factor is the date of re-entry to Switzerland. If a country is added to the list of risk areas, everyone who is there at that time must be quarantined upon their return to Switzerland. Contrary to what Stefan Kuster, Head of Communicable Diseases at the FOPH, initially said at the media conference on Wednesday, however, the quarantine obligation does not apply retroactively. Those who are already back in Switzerland, but have been in a newly classified risk area in the last 14 days do not need to go into quarantine. The FOPH made this clear on Thursday, after Kuster's statement caused confusion.

What happens if my travel destination is removed from the list of risk countries during my holiday stay?
The deadline is the date of entry to Switzerland: for example, those persons who entered Switzerland from Sweden on Wednesday will be subject to the 10-day quarantine. Those who return from there from Thursday can move around freely in public.

How can I assess whether a country could soon end up on the list of risk countries?
This balance is difficult to make. The authorities cannot give any guarantee, because the list is constantly being adapted to current developments. It was originally stated that the list would be adjusted every month. But the first update took place after two and a half weeks.

If you are planning holidays abroad, it would be a good too stay informed about the epidemiological situation on the ground. In principle, the FOPH adds countries to the list of risk areas if the number of new infections per 100,000 inhabitants has risen to more than 60 in the last 14 days. It may declare a state to be a risk area, even if the available information does not permit a reliable assessment, or if infected persons have entered Switzerland on several occasions.

Will my hotel and travel expenses be refunded for if my destination is declared a risk country?
This depends on the provider. If the travel destination is declared a risk area, large providers such as Hotelplan or Kuoni will refund the money paid for booked package holidays there. In the case of individual travellers, the refund depends on the terms and conditions of hotel and flight bookings. Many airlines allow a free re-booking if the flight destination is suddenly declared to be a risk area. When taking out travel insurance, it is recommended to look at the fine print. Some insurers do not provide coverage if a trip cannot be started due to the corona virus.

Will I continue to receive my pay if I have to go into quarantine instead of back to work?
If someone has to go into quarantine after entering the country from a risk area, and therefore cannot show up for work, this is considered to be an inability to work. This is generally considered to be the employee's fault, and the employer is thereby not obliged to continue to pay wages. Anyone who travels to a country that is only declared a risk area during their stay is not at fault, however. In this case, it must be individually checked whether there is a continuing wage payment obligation – if necessary through a court. People who are in quarantine, but can continue to work using home office are entitled to pay.