Quarantine-free travel between Israel and Bahrain for Covid-19 vaccinated individuals

Bahrain and Israel have reached an agreement permitting quarantine-free travel between the two countries for individuals who have received the Covid-19 vaccine.

In a statement issued by state-run Bahrain News Agency (BNA), it said that the agreement allows people who have been vaccinated in both countries, and received vaccinations recognized in the each other’s country, to be exempt from quarantine upon arrival.

Israel is reportedly currently administering both the Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines, while Bahrain has authorized Sinopharm, Pfizer-BioNTech, Oxford-AstraZeneca and Sputnik V for use within the kingdom.

The governments of #Bahrain and #Israel reach an agreement on mutual recognition of vaccination https://t.co/JlqoenUiWu pic.twitter.com/gY4LguywPt

— وزارة الخارجية ?? (@bahdiplomatic) April 22, 2021

The agreement also facilitated the recognition of the so-called “green passport”. Israel will recognise Bahraini vaccine passports not only for entry, but also to gain access to an Israeli domestic vaccine pass, called the Green Pass, which allows those who are vaccinated against Covid-19 or those recovered from the virus to access restaurants, gyms, and theaters, among other venues.

Bahrain’s vaccine passport consists of a QR code issued on the phones of travellers, containing information of their Covid-19 vaccination status,  which will be scanned at the passport control points of both countries.

Read: Bahrain launches digital Covid-19 “vaccine passport”

In the second phase, of the agreement reached between the two countries, arrangements will be made for people who have been vaccinated with a vaccine that is not currently recognized by one of the two countries, BNA said.

“This agreement is the first of its kind between the two countries and represents a global precedent for a bilateral agreement on mutual recognition of vaccination certificates. The identification process will be carried out digitally, which will greatly facilitate entry into both countries and is expected to strengthen tourism, trade and economic relations between the two countries,” added the statement.

The agreement was reached on Thursday, April 22, after talks were held between Bahrain’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani, and his Israeli counterpart, Gabi Ashkenazi, as well as after agreements were signed between the Israeli Embassy in Bahrain and the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Health in both countries.