Saudi Arabia makes booster shots mandatory for its citizens travelling abroad from February 9

In a recent COVID-19 travel update, the government of Saudi Arabia has made booster jabs mandatory for those travelling abroad.

The government has said that citizens who have received the booster shot will be allowed to travel abroad starting from February 9. The decision was based on local and global epidemiological situations.

An official source at the ministry stated, “Starting February 9, Saudis will be required to be fully vaccinated with a booster shot taken three months after the second dose of the COVID-19 vaccines, to travel outside the Kingdom.”

However, some people will be exempted from this mandate, like kids below 16 years and those who appear in the exempt category status on the Tawakkalna app. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabian citizens will be allowed to enter the nation only after providing a negative RT PCR or antigen test results not older than 48 hours.

People who have taken the COVID-19 booster dose are considered immune in the nation’s Tawakkalna app for those over 18 years and who were vaccinated more than eight months ago.

The booster shot is available for those who have completed three months after getting the second dose. As per the Health Ministry, the country has reported 3852 virus cases in the past 24 hours taking the number to 699,069 since the starting of the pandemic.