Government must publish new ordinance and charge vaccine certificate from this Monday (13)

The government should start charging this Monday (13) the Covid-19 vaccination certificate for those who enter Brazil by international flights or by land border.

The rule was imposed after an injunction (provisional) by Luís Roberto Barroso, minister of the STF (Supreme Federal Court), granted on Saturday (11) in an action presented by the Rede de Sustentabilidade party.

New government ordinance on border control is to be published during Monday (13). The rules would take effect from the disclosure of the text in the Official Gazette of the Union, according to the press office of the Casa Civil.

The government’s idea was to release, at airports, the entry of unvaccinated travelers who committed to a five-day quarantine. At the land border, the government would only charge the negative Covid-19 test for those who had not received the immunization.

Barroso decided that those who are not immunized can only enter Brazil in more restricted situations, such as those who prove that they did not receive the doses for medical reasons or those who arrive from countries without available vaccines.

The government is still finalizing manifestations of the bodies involved to publish the new rule. The expectation is that the text will be released in an extra edition of the Official Gazette.

Technicians from the government had a meeting this Sunday (12) at the Palácio do Planalto to work out details of the new rule. For example, about the group that is exempt from charging for the vaccine. Details of these exceptions should be noted in the ordinance.

In general, to travel to Brazil on international flights you will need to present proof of vaccination, negative Covid-19 test and DSV (Traveller’s Health Declaration).

These papers are presented to the airline, before boarding, and can be collected by inspectors at Brazilian airports.

Proof of vaccination from Covid-19 must be presented in physical or digital format.

Vaccines approved by Anvisa (National Health Surveillance Agency), WHO (World Health Organization) or by the health authority of the country where the traveler received the doses are accepted.

The application of the last dose or single dose must have taken place at least 14 days before the date of shipment.

ConnectSUS, the Bolsonaro government system used to issue this certificate, is down because of a hacker attack. The government recommends seeking a duplicate of the document at health centers or issuing the digital version of proof of vaccination on the websites of states and municipalities.

Travelers opting for Covid antigen testing must take the test 24 hours prior to departure. The RT-PCR exam may have been taken within 72 hours prior to the flight.

In the case of flights with connection or stopover, in which it is necessary to migrate to leave the restricted area of ​​the airport, and which exceed these examination deadlines, the traveler must prove that he has taken a new test.

The DSV must be filled in at most 24 hours before departure to Brazil. This is the link to access the form.

Anyone entering the country by road or other land means must present proof of vaccination at border posts.

Failure to comply with health rules can lead to foreigners being deported. Brazilians can respond to civil, administrative and criminal actions.

The inspection of these documents may involve agents from Anvisa, the Federal Police and even military personnel who work at the borders. Details about monitoring should be noted in the ordinance that has not yet been released.

In the lawsuit presented to the Supreme, the Network accuses Bolsonaro of omission and denial for not complying with Anvisa’s recommendation to demand the vaccine passport for travelers arriving in Brazil.

Pressed, the Bolsonaro government came to accept part of the agency’s recommendations last week, when he decided to charge for the vaccination or quarantine certificate from those who enter Brazil for international flights.

But Anvisa recommended barring the unvaccinated at the land border, while the government just wanted to demand a negative test from Covid of this group.

The rules defined by the government would take effect on the 11th, but the charge was postponed to the 18th after the hacker attack. The whole scenario changed with the decision of Barroso, who anticipated stricter controls at the borders.

The Supreme Minister asked that the case also be judged in plenary, in the virtual modality (written votes), as a matter of urgency. The trial will start at midnight on Wednesday (15th) and end at 11:59pm.

In the preliminary decision, the magistrate cited a government decree on border control and pointed out that it was necessary to justify the waiver of the vaccination certificate in some cases, such as those arriving from Paraguay.

“It seems to be obvious that, in view of this forecast, any foreign traveler will be able to enter Brazil through this door,” stated Barroso.

The land border with Paraguay had been open since October.

The minister sent notification to the Presidency and the AGU (Attorney-General of the Union) about the decision, which should take place on Monday.

A leaf contacted the Union’s attorney general, minister Bruno Bianco. He said that a team would analyze the content of Barroso’s decision before commenting on the matter. This Sunday (12), Bianco was sought out again but did not return.

The government resisted making the passport obligatory in order to avoid an erosion of the Pocket Narist support base. Bolsonaro, who distorts data and discourages Covid-19 vaccination, loathes the idea of ​​requiring a “vaccine passport.”

To get around the president’s speech, the ministers avoided the term and emphasized that non-immunized people would have the option of being quarantined in Brazil.

The president also tried to distance himself from the government’s decision to charge for the certificate. “I don’t think anything. It was the Ministry of Health who decided. They decided for five days. It was the final word, they arrived for me… Vaccination was there. For me, vaccination would not even go in, there would only be PCR. Vaccination does not prevent contagion,” he said on Saturday (11).

Allies of the president had already hoped that the situation would stop at the STF and considered that this would be a good way to outsource the decision and avoid displeasing Bolsonaro and government supporters.