COVID-19 Precautionary Measures in Latvia (19 July Update)

Can a resident enter the country?

• Yes

• Latvian nationals, immediate family members of Latvian citizens, and permanent or long-term residents are allowed entry.

Can a foreigner enter the country?

• Yes, with exceptions

• Restrictions on entry to Latvia depend on the country the person is travelling from and on whether the person has been vaccinated or has recovered from COVID-19. Countries have been characterized by different risk levels (“Very High”/ ”High”/ “Low”) which can be found at this website.

• Vaccinated and unvaccinated travellers and/or those who have recovered from COVID-19 infection arriving from low-risk countries of the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area (EEA), Switzerland, and the United Kingdom (UK) are allowed to enter even for non-essential travel.

• Vaccinated and unvaccinated travellers and/or those who have recovered from COVID-19 infection arriving from high-risk countries of the EU, the EEA, Switzerland, and the UK may enter even for non-essential travel. Exceptions to this restriction can be found at this website.

• Vaccinated travellers and/or those who have recovered from COVID-19 infection may enter if arriving from high-risk countries outside the EU, EEA, Switzerland, and the UK even for non-essential travel. Exceptions to this restriction can be found at this website.

• Unvaccinated travellers arriving from high-risk countries outside the EU, EEA, Switzerland, and the UK are not allowed to enter. Exceptions to this restriction can be found at this website.

• Any traveller arriving from any very high-risk country is not allowed to enter. Exceptions to this restriction can be found at this website.

• Entry to Latvia in a private vehicle is allowed for the nationals of Latvia and other European Union Member States, the European Economic Area countries, the Swiss Confederation, and the United Kingdom, and permanent residents of the European Union who have a residence permit in Latvia.

Is transit allowed through the country?

• Yes

• Passengers are allowed to transit through Latvia. Persons transiting through Latvia will have to cross the country within 12 hours of submitting the arrival confirmation form on the https://covidpass.lv/ website.

Is a test required on arrival?

• No, with exceptions

• There are currently no special health screening measures in place for travellers on arrival.

• Unvaccinated travellers who arrive from a high-risk non-EU country, as well as all travellers arriving from very high COVID-19 risk countries regardless of vaccination status, must be tested upon arrival at their own expense.

• If travellers entered the country without a test, then a PCR test must be performed at the nearest testing point within 24 hours at their own expense by registering for the test online. Until the test result is received, the person stays at their place of residence or stays at one of the tourist accommodations.

• A COVID-19 test-on-arrival must be undertaken (at their own expense) by travellers entering the Republic of Latvia through border crossing points Grebņeva, Terehova, Pāternieki, or Silene at the external land border who cannot present an interoperation EU certificate on vaccination, testing or recovery or, other valid document issued in a European Union Member State, a European Economic Area country, the Swiss Confederation, or the United Kingdom and certifying that they have been vaccinated against, recovered from or tested for COVID-19. Exceptions to these restrictions can be found here.

Test certificate required?

• Yes, with exceptions

• Latvia began accepting the “EU Digital COVID Certificate” (EUDCC) from 1 July 2021. Holders of EU DCC will be allowed to enter Latvia, without being subject to further restrictions (testing or quarantine), on the condition that their certificate contains either:

• Proof of vaccination, valid with the following conditions: The full vaccination course is reached 15 days after the second doses of Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca vaccines, or 15 days after the single dose of the Janssen vaccine.

• Proof of recovery from COVID-19, valid 180 days;

• A negative result for a COVID-19 test. A negative PCR test certificate issued within the past 72 hours or a Rapid Antigen test certificate issued within the past 24 hours are accepted.

• Children under 12 years old are exempted from the testing or quarantine requirements.

• Unvaccinated travellers arriving from the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area (EEA), Switzerland, the United Kingdom (UK), low COVID-19 risk non-EU countries as well as high COVID-19 risk non- EU countries, must present a negative COVID-19 PCR test result issued within 72 hours or a rapid antigen test certificate issued within 24 hours prior to arrival in Latvia.

• Travellers arriving from very high COVID-19 risk countries regardless of vaccination status, must present a negative PCR test that was taken within 72 hours before boarding or an antigen test no older than 24 hours.

• The certificate must be in English, French, Russian, or the language of the country of departure.

• Vaccinated persons and persons recovered from COVID-19 are exempt from testing prior to travel unless they are travelling from a very high-risk country.

• These requirements also apply to those arriving in Latvia in a personal vehicle. The negative COVID-19 test results must be indicated in the Covidpass form, which will be checked by border and police officers. Latvian nationals and EU permanent residents with residence permits, who have a positive COVID-19 test result, will be able to return to Latvia by private vehicle.

• Persons entering Latvia to perform their job duties or travelling to or from their workplace, transport companies employees and children below 11 years of age are exempt from the COVID-19 test requirement. The full list of exceptions may be found here.

Is quarantine required on arrival?

• Yes, with exceptions

• Latvia began accepting the “EU Digital COVID Certificate” (EUDCC) from 1 July 2021. Holders of EUDCC will be allowed to enter Latvia, without being subject to further restrictions (testing or quarantine), on the condition that their certificate contains either:

• Proof of vaccination, valid with the following conditions: The full vaccination course is reached 15 days after the second doses of Pfizer, Moderna, and AstraZeneca vaccines, or 15 days after the single dose of the Janssen vaccine.

• Proof of recovery from COVID-19, valid 180 days;

• A negative result for a COVID-19 test. A negative PCR test certificate issued within the past 72 hours or a Rapid Antigen test certificate issued within the past 24 hours are accepted.

• Children under 12 years old are exempted from the testing or quarantine requirements.

• Travellers who have not been vaccinated or have not had COVID-19 and recovered should observe self-isolation for 10-days when returning from high-risk countries (EU, EEA, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and other countries).

• Travellers arriving from very high-risk countries regardless of vaccination or recovered from COVID-19 must observe self-isolation for 10-days.

• The quarantine period can be reduced by obtaining a negative result from a COVID-19 test taken on day 7 after arrival in Latvia.

• When arriving from a low-risk country self-isolation is not required, irrespective of vaccination status. More information can be found here.

• Based on the above restrictions, arriving travellers will be required to spend between 0 to 10 days in quarantine.

Is vaccination required?

• No

• A vaccination for COVID-19 is not mandatory for entry into the country. However, fully vaccinated travellers who can document that they have completed a course of vaccination are exempted from testing and quarantine unless they are arriving from a country in the “very high risk” category.

• Travellers will be considered as fully vaccinated only if they have completed the full course from one of the following vaccines:

• (a) 2 doses of Vaxzevria (AstraZeneca) vaccine,

• (b) 2 doses of Comirmaty vaccine,

• (c) 2 doses of Moderna vaccine,

• (d) 1 dose of Janssen vaccine. More information regarding vaccines can be found here.

Insurance required?

• No

• Proof of insurance coverage for COVID-19 expenses is not required to enter the country.

Entry form required?

• Yes

• All persons travelling to Latvia must fill out an electronic form which can be found here, not earlier than 48 hours before entering Latvia and provide the requested information concerning vaccination, testing, or recovery from COVID-19.

• After completing the form, travellers will receive a unique QR code. The form/questionnaire is available at the following website: https://covidpass.lv/en/. The form has to be completed for all persons, including children

• Documents or other reliable proof confirming the purpose of entry indicated on the covidpass.lv website must be presented to the State Border Guard or the State Police on demand.

• The traveller will not be required to present the documents if information that confirms any of the purposes of entry is already available in the national information system.

• Latvia began accepting the “EU Digital COVID certificate” (EU DCC) from 1 July 2021. Holders of EU DCC will be allowed to enter Latvia, without being subject to further restrictions (testing or quarantine), on the condition that their certificate contains either:

• Proof of vaccination, valid with the following conditions: The full vaccination course is reached 15 days after the second doses of Pfizer, Moderna, and AstraZeneca vaccines, or 15 days after the single dose of the Janssen vaccine.

• Proof of recovery from COVID-19, valid 180 days;

• A negative result for a COVID-19 test. A negative PCR test certificate issued within the past 72 hours or a Rapid Antigen test certificate issued within the past 24 hours are accepted.

• Children under 12 years old are exempted from the testing or quarantine requirements.

Recommended Border App

• Yes

• “Apturi Covid Latvia” is the recommended COVID-19 tracing app and can be found here.

Airline restrictions

• Moderate

• International and domestic, commercial passenger airline services have resumed.

• All travellers above the age of seven are required to wear face masks in airports.

Border restrictions

• Significant

• All non-essential travel to Latvia is currently banned for anyone arriving from very high-risk countries while fully vaccinated travellers or travellers who have recovered from COVID-19 travelling from high-risk countries** are permitted to travel to Latvia for non-essential purposes. Essential reasons for travel include work, study, transit, family reunions, funerals, medical treatment, returning to one's home, and accompanying a minor. Passengers will be required to present documentation confirming essential travel.

• A COVID-19 test-on-arrival must be undertaken (at their own expense) by travellers entering the Republic of Latvia through the external land border crossing points of Grebeva, Terehova, Pternieki, or Silene and who do not have an interoperation EU certificate on vaccination, testing, or recovery or any other valid document issued in a European Union Member State, a European Economic Area country, the Swiss Confederation, or the United Kingdom certifying that they have been vaccinated, tested, or recovered from COVID-19. Exceptions can be found here.

Curfew restrictions

• Minimal

• The state of emergency has been lifted.

Social distancing restrictions

• Moderate

• Up to 50 individuals can participate in outdoor marches and pickets, subject to epidemiological safety procedures.

• Up to 20 people are allowed to gather indoors and up to 50 people outdoors, not following the household principle.

• Only employees whose duties cannot be performed remotely due to the nature of their work and who have been authorized will be allowed to work in person. It is the employer's responsibility to identify those employees who really need to perform on-site duties to ensure business continuity. More information can be found here.

Internal travel restrictions

• Minimal

• There are no restrictions on inter-state or inter-city travel. However, limitations on passenger numbers apply to public transport.

• Face masks that cover the nose and mouth are mandatory for passengers on public transport.

Non-essential shops open?

• Yes

• Grocery stores, shopping centres and leisure facilities are open.

• All retail sales and service outlets are allowed to open. Shopping must be done individually. People violating epidemiological safety requirements shall be denied service. Information on the number of customers permitted shall be clearly visible at the entrance of the store.

• More information can be found here.

  Accommodations open?

• Yes

• Hotels are open.

Restaurants open?

• Yes

• Outdoor dining services and takeaway services are permitted between 06:00 to 00:00 (local time). Total persons (including both adults and children) should not exceed more than ten at the same table.

• Indoor catering services are allowed for people who are vaccinated/recovered from COVID-19 and for people with a negative COVID-19 test, as well as for children under the age of 13 following epidemiological safety requirements. More information can be found here.

Bars and cafes open?

• No

• Entertainment venues, including discos, bars, gambling halls, nightclubs, and children's party venues, are closed.

Beaches and tourism sites open?

• No, with exceptions

• Water parks, swimming pools, baths, skating rinks, entertainment centres, jump parks are closed. Nature trails are open for individual recreation.

Museums and heritage sites open?

• No

• Archives, libraries, museums, and places with art and history exhibitions will gradually resume work as soon as the site is prepared for an opening for work, subject to epidemiological safety requirements.

*Personal care services open? *

• No, with exceptions

• Spas, beauty care, piercing, and tattoo services are closed.

• Beauty salons are permitted to open with strict adherence to health protocols.

• The vaccinated provider may provide services to any person, including a person who is unable to present an interoperable certificate, provided that the service is provided individually (in a separate room).

Places of worship open?

• Yes

• Places of worship are permitted to operate with capacity limits from 06:00 until 00:00, adhering to strict social distancing measures. Face masks are required.

Events allowed?

• Yes, with exceptions

• No public events are allowed. Outdoor marches and pickets may be organized for up to 50 people, subject to epidemiological safety measures. Up to 20 people are allowed to gather indoors and up to 50 people outdoors, not following the household principle.

• Competitions and training may take place if included in the competition calendar of international sports federations. Competitions for teams of the highest leagues may take place without spectators. Sports training in groups may only take place outdoors and with not more than twenty people and without the use of changing rooms.

• Outdoor sports training and classes may start no earlier than 6:00 and take place until 00:00.

• Up to 20 people indoors and up to 50 people outdoors may gather for funerals, baptisms, and marriages, not following the household principle.

Masks required in public?

• Yes

• A face mask must be used by everyone seven years of age and older on premises outside the household if there is more than one person in the room. Face masks are required on public transport.

• Individuals found not wearing face masks can be fined.

Other

• Public events, such as concerts, cinema, theatre shows, can be attended by people who are vaccinated or have had COVID-19 during the past 6 months or have had a negative COVID-19 test.

• Libraries may open and offer take-away services.

• Only employees whose duties cannot be performed remotely due to the nature of their work are allowed to work on-site.

• Kindergartens are allowed to operate subject to epidemiological safety requirements.

The COVID-19 epidemic is constantly changing worldwide. Travel and border restrictions may change with little or no notice. Airlines may have their own requirements for testing, masking, and distancing. It is recommended that travellers carry a supply of face masks since the requirement can vary by location. It is recommended that travellers practice social distancing, maintain a 6-foot distance from other individuals and avoid crowded areas. Check with your airline, booking agent, or country's embassy for information on your specific travel plans.