Abu Dhabi opened its borders to fully vaccinated tourists and residents as of 5 September, according to an announcement by Abu Dhabi’s Emergency, Crisis and Disasters Committee and the Department of Culture and Tourism.

The ruling applies for all nationalities who have been fully vaccinated and for unvaccinated visitors from ‘Green List’ countries, with no quarantine measures. Vaccines must be approved by the World Health organisation (WHO).

To support seamless entry for international travellers and enable visitors to safely enjoy the UAE capital’s diverse experiences through the Abu Dhabi Green Pass, the Department of Culture and Tourism has outlined a simple process to enable tourists to register their international vaccination certificate or vaccination exemption document. They must upload the information for verification five days before their travel date via the Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship (ICA) Smart app or via ica.gov.ae website.

Applicants will receive an SMS confirmation that will include a link to the Alhosn app, which must be downloaded prior to travel. The Alhosn app displays users’ vaccination status and PCR test results, which are required to activate the Abu Dhabi Green Pass.

Upon arrival, travellers will receive a Unified ID number from airport immigration or via the ICA Smart app or website; this will complete the registration on the Alhosn app. Following a PCR test at the airport, visitors can activate the Green Pass, allowing them entry to all public spaces in the emirate.

Children under 12 and People of Determination (POD) with moderate and severe disabilities are exempt from COVID-19 PCR testing.

Entry for vaccinated travellers from Green List countries

Under the new guidelines, vaccinated travellers from all over the world arriving from green list countries will be required to show a negative PCR test taken a maximum of 48 hours before departure and take a PCR test at the airport on arrival. They will not need to quarantine but will be required to take one more PCR test on day 6 (Counting the day of arrival as day 1). Their hotel will arrange testing on the premises, for their convenience.

Entry for vaccinated travellers from all countries (outside the green list)

Under the new guidelines, vaccinated travellers from all over the world, arriving from countries not on the green list, will be required to show a negative PCR test taken a maximum of 48 hours before departure and take a PCR test at the airport on arrival. They will not need to quarantine but will be required to take one more PCR test on day four and day eight (counting the day of arrival as day one).

To further protect community members and travellers in the emirate, Abu Dhabi implemented a ‘Green Pass’ protocol on 20 August, enabling only those that are fully vaccinated, officially exempted or under 16 years of age to access key public places and attractions.

To maintain ‘green’ status on Alhosn app, fully vaccinated individuals must show a negative PCR test result taken within the last 30 days, officially exempted individuals a negative PCR test result taken within the last seven days. Children under 16 years of age automatically receive ‘green’ status without the need to test.

The Alhosn app will recognise and automatically synchronise the tourists’ international vaccination or exemption certifications that are uploaded on the ICA App or website, as part of the registration process. In the case of any technical issues with Alhosn app, Abu Dhabi attractions will accept tourists’ vaccination certificates from their home country app or official report, as well as the negative PCR result from the airport test via SMS.