• Fully vaccinated: A viral test must be taken no more than 3 days before the
flight’s departure from a foreign country if a traveler has been fully vaccinated
against COVID-19.
• Not fully vaccinated: The test must be taken no more than 1 day before the
flight’s departure from a foreign country if a travelers does not have proof of
being fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
For U.S. citizens who have recently recovered from COVID-19, you may choose to
instead provide documentation of recovery from COVID-19 (i.e., your positive COVID-
19 viral test result taken no more than 90 days before the flight’s departure from a
foreign country and a letter from a licensed healthcare provider or a public health official
stating that you were cleared to travel). Note: Proof of previous COVID-19 infection is
not an accepted quarantine exemption under the Hawaiʻi Safe Travels program.
Exemptions to Travel Policy
The CDC has outlined several exceptions to the federal government’s international
travel policy for the following groups:
• Children under 18 years of age: International visitors over the age of 2 and
under 18 and traveling with vaccinated adults must still show proof of a negative
COVID-19 test taken within 3 days of departure. If they are traveling
unaccompanied, they must show proof of a test taken within 1 day.
• People medically unable to receive the vaccine: Visitors who haven’t been
vaccinated for medical reasons will need to present a letter to the airline from a
medical professional. There are also limited exceptions for visitors who need to
travel to the United States for humanitarian reasons or an emergency, which will
require a State Department letter before departure.
• Emergency travelers without timely access to a vaccine: Exemptions to the
vaccination requirements are also provided to persons with valid visas (excluding
B-1 business or B-2 tourism visas) who are citizens of one of the 50
countries the United States currently recognizes as having low vaccine
availability and vaccination rates, including much of Africa as well as
Afghanistan, Haiti, Iraq and Armenia.
Other exceptions provided under the President’s proclamation and CDC’s order include:
persons on diplomatic or official foreign government travel; participants in certain
COVID-19 vaccine trials; those with limited COVID-19 vaccine availability; certain
members of the U.S. Armed Forces or their spouses or children (under 18 years of