Chile Reopens Land Borders

On May 1st, Chile reopened 22 of its land frontiers which have been closed since March 17, 2020, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic arrival in the country. The 22 borders reopened were the ones neighboring Argentina, Bolivia, and Peru.

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This move represents a new stage in the coronavirus pandemic for the Chilean government. Since March 17, the borders kept their checkpoints closed, only allowing commercial cargo to enter the country, restricting the movement of people. The Chilean Interior Ministry announced the reopening of the borders saying that coronavirus cases have been stabilized in the country.

The message on the official Twitter account of the Border Crossing Unit of the Interior Ministry revealed, "Sunday, May 1, traffic at the border will be normalized. Before traveling to Chile, find out about the '#PlanFronteraProtegidas,' which lays out both health and immigration requirements."

To prepare the country for the new measures, the Chilean government has established a new system that includes three alert levels, with restrictions linked to according to the state of play. The first level has been established for all the borders (Level 1 or "low health impact"), having no restriction on letting people travel to the country.

As of May 1, Plan #FronterasProtegidas begins to govern, which normalizes the border crossings of our country with migratory and health requirements. Find out before traveling to Chile. 

The people who enter the country will require filling out a health form prior. Having health insurance in place that covers a possible Covid-19 diagnosis will be mandatory for non-residents foreigners.

The alert system will be raised to Level 2 should a  new virus variant appears, increasing the anti-COVID measures. All restrictions will be reimposed once Level 3 is established.