Austria is planning to introduce a pre-travel clearance system, which should be based on the principle that Greece is already practicing. Interior Minister Karl Nehammer announced this in a press conference on Tuesday. However, more than the “working title” has not yet been determined.
It is currently planned that advance notifications will only be made for entries from Corona risk areas (according to the classification of the Austrian authorities). How this will be designed is still completely open. Nehammer said that there are still some questions to be clarified with regard to data protection and the exact implementation. The interior minister was also unable to name a date for the start.
Karl Nehammer pointed out that the controls aimed at travelers returning from the Balkans are currently being strengthened. In future, "every" PCR test may not be submitted, but only those that are recognized by laboratories that Austria have placed on a list of approved institutes. The aim is to curb abuse with fake tests. The quarantine should also be strictly controlled for those returning from the Balkans.
Since Tuesday, all airlines have been instructed by NOTAM that they collect data from their passengers on flights operated from areas classified as risk areas by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and forward it to the authorities on request. The data records must be kept for 28 days. The following information is collected: first name, surname, date of birth, citizenship, place of departure, departure and arrival time, point of entry in Austria, total number of passengers and the flight number.
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