The Austrian Minister of Health Rudolf Anschober published the latest tightening of entry regulations on Tuesday. This is drastically tightened for people who have close relatives or life partners or spouses abroad. The word “re-entry” has been deleted.

This has fatal consequences, because until now people who visited close family members or their spouse or partner as part of a regular commuter traffic, i.e. at least once a month, were exempt from the obligation to quarantine. Now Anschober (Greens) creates a particularly absurd circumstance, which is shown below.

Suppose a man lives in Austria and his partner in Germany. Up to now, they have been able to visit each other free of quarantine on the basis of Section 8 (2) no. The prerequisite for this was that this take place at least once a month and that it is made credible during the inspection. Now the completely unworldly and absurd circumstance occurs that the woman is allowed to visit her partner in Austria quarantine-free due to the legal situation in Germany and the latest litter from Rudolf Anschober, but not the other way around. The man would have to go into a ten-day quarantine in Austria after returning from Germany. This is caused by this tiny sentence, which the Green Minister published in the Federal Law Gazette: “In § 4 Paragraph 8 Z 2, 2 and 3 the phrase 'or re-entry' is omitted”.

Mandatory entry registration goes directly to the local health department

From Friday is - as reported - an electronic pre-entry notification is compulsory. According to the text of the regulation, the following data, which should be stored for 28 days, is requested:

"(1) Persons entering Austria are obliged to provide the following data by registering in accordance with Section 25a of the 1950 Epidemic Act (EpiG):

1. First and Last Name,
2. Date of birth,
3. Residential or residence address (if different, the quarantine location),
4. Date of entry,
5. any date of departure,
6. State or territory of departure
7. Stay during the last ten days prior to entry,
8. Contact details (telephone number, email address),
9. Presence of a medical certificate.

(2) Registration must be carried out electronically in accordance with the requirements of Section 25a (3) EpiG.

(3) If it is not possible to register using the electronic form, the obligation pursuant to Paragraph 1 can exceptionally be met by filling out the form in accordance with Annex E or Annex F. "

The Anschober Ministry writes in a media statement: “In principle, all persons entering Austria must register online. This also applies to those who enter from countries listed in Appendix A (see below). There are individual exceptions to the registration requirement, for example for regular commuters, for transit travelers or for people who enter with families for reasons that are particularly worthy of consideration and cannot be postponed. The data of the online registration are automatically forwarded to the district administrative authority responsible for the place of residence in Austria. The electronic registration requirement is intended to help improve the control of the quarantine and facilitate contact tracing. How to proceed: People entering the country fill out an online form (link at https://www.sozialministerium.at/Informationen-zum-Coronavirus/Coronavirus—Haeufig-stellen-Fracht/FAQ–Reisen-und-Tourismus.html). On the basis of the data entered, the system informs you about the consequences of the entry - i.e. whether the person has to go into quarantine or is allowed to enter unhindered. The people entering the country will then receive a PDF document with a QR code and the entered data via download and to the email address provided. This document must either be printed out or carried digitally (on the smartphone). In the event of an inspection by the authorities, this document must be presented. In exceptional cases, for example if someone does not have the technical means to fill out the document online, the form can also be filled out and used in printed form ”.

Entry only from ten countries without segregation

Without a quarantine obligation, only entries from countries listed in Appendix A of the Entry Ordinance are currently possible. These include: Australia, Finland, Greece, Iceland, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, South Korea and the Vatican.

Entrants from EU / EEA countries, Switzerland, Andorra, Monaco, San Marino, the Vatican and the United Kingdom are generally entitled to enter, but have to go into a 10-day quarantine - unless the entry is from one in Appendix A. State mentioned in the regulation: Australia, Finland, Greece, Iceland, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, South Korea and the Vatican. The early termination of the quarantine due to a negative PCR or antigen test is possible on the fifth day at the earliest (ie from the 5th day after entry, whereby the day of entry represents "day zero").

Entry from all other countries is possible for Austrians as well as citizens from other EU / EEA countries, Switzerland, Andorra, Monaco, San Marino, the Vatican and the United Kingdom provided that the quarantine regulations explained above are observed. Otherwise, entry from these countries is still prohibited - with certain exceptions (such as medical reasons, reasons that are particularly worth considering in the family circle, professional purposes).