Breaking News: Taiwan bans all foreign visitors

Taiwan bans entry for foreign travelers, mandatory 14-day quarantine for returning foreign residents goes into effect March 19

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan's Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) on Wednesday (March 18) announced that as confirmed cases of Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) continue to stream in, all foreign visitors will be barred from entering the country effective Thursday (March 19), while foreign residents of Taiwan must undergo a mandatory 14-day quarantine upon re-entry.

During a press conference held on Wednesday morning, Health Minister and CECC head Chen Shih-chung (陳時中) announced that effective Thursday, all travelers arriving in Taiwan, both Taiwanese and foreign, must undergo a 14-day quarantine. Taiwan's Foreign Minister Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) then announced that all foreign nationals will be barred from entering Taiwan, with the special exception of persons holding an Alien Resident Certificate (ARC, 居留證), diplomatic officials, and businesspeople with special entry permits, also effective on Thursday.

Due to the sudden increase in cases coming from Europe, Egypt, and Turkey, people who returned from trips from these areas between March 5 and March 14 must immediately go back into home quarantine. During their quarantine period, they are not allowed to go out.

The government will also offer a stipend of NT$1,000 per day for those who must undergo quarantine. Chen then exhorted those who have recently traveled to Europe to contact their local government officials and to be completely truthful about their travel history and those they came in contact with.

Chen warned that he has the full list of passengers who have traveled to these places and if any persons fail to report for quarantine, they will be punished. He added that those who fail to report for quarantine will also forfeit their daily stipend.

https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/3899387