New USVI Portal Guidelines

Looks like some positive changes for fully vaccinated travelers transiting to BVI via STT and back to USVI via sea. Effective March 5 no outdoor masks are required in most places and fully vaccinated individuals can upload Vaccine card info (assuming PDF) in lieu of test results to obtain green approval code. Portal not yet updated but here is the full order:

https://viconsortium.com/editor_new/source/bryan35thexecorder.pdf

So does this mean we don't have to take Rapid Antigen Tests going to BVI from STT and back?

You still need a negative test to enter the BVI but if entering via STT from the mainland you won’t need to upload a test result to the USVI portal - just your vaccine card. When returning to USVI from BVI by sea it looks like you will be able to again use your vaccine info to gain a green QR code. If flying then still subject to CDC regulations (test within 24 hours). Portal should be updated by March 5.

Bleech, not sure I like this development. My luck I'll avoid COVID before and during my trip, but catch it on the flight home

Great change!
G

No. That is not what this says. For entry to the USVI, either by air or water, proof of vaccination uploaded to the USVI portal is all that is required. No tests of vaccinated.

However, BVI still requires a negative test for admission. Hopefully that will change to be consistent with the USVI. Most likely dependent on hospitalization usage in the BVI.

Entry to USVI from BVI by air will still be subject to CDC requirements for international air arrivals. USVI is the first port of air entry. See page 9 item C.

Good catch. Hope US changes international air arrivals protocol in next few months as covid numbers improve abroad.

It will be interesting to watch and see…..

I am totally confused with this update. I will be leaving the BVI on March 10 and traveling to STT via ferry to catch a flight back to the US. We are fully vaccinated so does this mean we do not have to upload a negative covid test into the USVI portal and just upload our vaccine card? We were planning on doing the eMed testing coming back into the USVI. We will be leaving for the BVI on March 3 so any new updates effective March 5 will not apply. Does the 48 hour test result have to be from the time our plane leaves the mainland US? We leave the US at 8 AM and will not arrive in the BVI until 5. Hoping we don't have to take a Rapid Test upon arrival to Roadtown

We enter the BVI this Friday. Will take our test at 48hrs out and be all set for that (my understanding is that it is really 2 days, not 48hrs). Will use the same test for USVI entry.

We return home on the 13th. We have emed tests, we will now not use them, just upload our vacc card and come on back to the USVI via ferry. If you are flying to STT from EIS, this will not work, has to be via water.

Very exciting to not have the covid hanging over us as we enjoy our rum punches. We are still bringing our emed tests.... just in case.

So, the way I am understanding this is we don't need to submit a test to the USVI travel portal apon re entry from BVI, (just vac card). But we still need to test 24 hrs before re entry per CDC guidlines.

Yes, if you are flying. If you use the ferry, it's different rules.

US mainland to USVI via air-no testing, just VAX cards? It's only international arrivals to USVI by air that still need to test. Is that correct?

Now I wish we were heading back home in April via STT and not flying EIS-SJU-home. Repricing my ticket it would be $1000+. Sigh.

This would be a huge relief. It's one thing to do some testing in our home town, in person, and print out results before the trip, but the stress of bringing tests along, worrying if they are kept at the right temperature and "do I have enough for a family of 5? Will they be invalid/faulty/inconclusive/positive? Will the boat wifi work, will it drop out, how many hours will it take for our group?" -- This would be hanging over us the whole week, so if we can simply upload our vaccination cards into USVI portal, boy that is a big simplification to the process. Thank you for sharing! I was just about to buy the emed tests strictly for the return trip via ferry from BVI to St Thomas on our way back to the mainland.

I think we need to adopt a wait and see until the actual portal site is updated - hearing lots of interpretations of the new policies.......

Is neg test still required flying from EIS to SJU if fully vax'd?

Yes - CDC has not, to date, changed the testing requirement for international air arrivals - SJU is your first port of entry into the US.

Jason,
Not blowing smoke at you but being boots on the ground and reading many of your prior posts you seem to be one of the most knowledgable on the entry/departing issues. I'm looking for a bit of clarity on these new requirements in effect March 5 as well as the 48 hour requirement for BVI.
On the 48 hour BVI requirement you have stated a few times that it is really 2 days and not 48 hours. So to clarify if I take a test on March 8 at 10am and arrive at Roadtown by ferry on March 10 at 6pm, my test is still good and I should not be required to test at Roadtown?
Secondly, being fully vaxxed arriving STT from ATL on March 10- I need vax card and current testing (my rapid test taken March 8)? Leaving BVI by ferry on March 21 to STT and then flying out of STT to ATL I need only upload vax card to the portal, no testing required to get in by ferry or leave STT to ATL?
I apologize because I know this issue has been gone through ad nauseum but posters keep repeating in different ways and it just adds to the confusion.
Thanks
David

Correct. A test anytime on March 8 is good for entry anytime on March 10.

The new USVI rules still seem fuzzy but you may need to upload a test to get into STT by ferry. Definitely nothing required to fly to ATL.

From what I am reading and hearing as of Friday March 5th just a US vax card uploaded to the USVI portal is good for BVI to STT via ferry..no test required.Onward travel to the mainland ..no problem.

Thank you

Something for those travelling this weekend. Seeing that March 5 is a Friday, and experience saying things move a little slower in the islands, I would not be at all surprised if the USVI portal is not ready for this change on that day. Just be prepared in case....

I am hearing the portal will be updated by Monday. That is the 7th. Guess we will wait and see.

Can anyone provide links to official USVI government websites that are saying that the testing requirement will be dropped? We fly into STT from the U.S. on March 11 and our return from BVI to STT by ferry is on March 20 to fly back out to the U.S.

If I am reading this correctly, we just need to have our vax card loaded into the USVI portal and a negative test on March 9 or March 10 to get us all the way into BVI on March 11 with no further testing required for the entire trip (including return)?

I think you will still need a test between the BVI and USVI when you return. No real confirmation yet that international ferries are exempt.

I thought it was too good to be true......

I suppose we wait til March 7 and see what the portal changes entail. I emailed this question to the USVI portal team but they have not responded. If they follow CDC regulations only international air arrivals will require testing…….

Yes, if they keep the ferry testing they would be doing so 'just because'. It is not required by the CDC. We return to STT on March 13th from BVI, so I am hoping we can scoot in with just a vac card. Bringing our emed tests just in case.

Does anyone know where I can find a list of the rapid antigen test results that are accepted by the BVI? I have the eMed tests but there is a test site right down the street that is using the Nomi SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-Ag) INDICAID lateral flow immunoassay test. It's free and I have been tested there twice. I just don't want to assume it's approved and then have a problem upon arrival in the BVI.

What do the results look like? The keys to being accepted are: Patient name, lab location, date/time of sample, CLIA certified lab stamp, signature, negative result.

It has everything except a CLIA stamp and a signature so that means that's out. Thanks for the information. I think I saw previous posts that the eMed Binax Now report comes back with both of those on it.

The eMed Binax Now does have all the correct CLIA stamp, etc. Used them many times there.

Anything new on this?

USVI portal has been updated: https://usviupdate.com/

Fully vaccinated travelers do not need to test when arriving from mainland (domestic travel). Vax cards will be uploaded.

International arrivals, both air and sea, including arrivals from BVI, still require a test.

Just registered in the USVI portal for our arrival March 11 (this Friday). Anyone know how long it's taking to get approval with the new guidelines? I clicked on the link to track my application and it said site "not found". And are they sending the green QR code approval to your email address?

One would think that with the BVI's stringent entry protocols the USVI could make things a little easier for travelers passing through. Travelers arriving from mainland US with no testing seem a bit more of a risk than people who have tested to gain entry into the BVI and just want to pass back through to go home.

So clearly the information that fully vaccinated US citizens returning from BVI by ferry still need to be tested for arrival into USVI, basically nothing has changed???

That is correct. As of today, a person travelling from the U.S. mainland to St. Thomas via air, then to the BVI via either air or ferry will need to test to get into the BVI. Entry into St. Thomas would require either uploading appropriate proof of vaccination or, if unvaccinated, negative test (test could be same as entry test to BVI).

Likewise, a person travelling from the BVI to St. Thomas via either air or ferry will also need to test and upload proof of vaccination. Testing timeframe is now 5 days prior to entry in both cases.

Clearly, the BVI will be looking at their own covid data metrics to determine when to move in alignment with the USVI policy of accepting vaccination status as the entry protocol. Similarly, the USVI will be looking at the BVI (and other international) metrics to determine when they change protocols for International arrivals.

Until the travel policies of both the USVI and the BVI become more seamless, tourists will continue to have to deal with the testing process, which only discourages tourism. Given the declining numbers everywhere, one can only hope this comes sooner than later.

Interesting that the USVI is now stipulating a 5 day test for international air arrivals when the federal (CDC) mandates are for a 24 hour test. Aren’t they, as a first port of air entry, bound to follow CDC guidelines? Have the CDC international air arrival guidelines changed?

That’s my understanding that we have to test coming back from BVI on the ferry. Right now we’re waiting to get our QR code to get into USVI on Friday so that we can get over to the BVI that afternoon. We submitted yesterday but no response yet. I tried the “track your application” link but it goes to nowhere.

So…..I emailed the USVI portal just to make sure they had received our applications because the track application link was down. Within minutes the approvals for both me and my wife arrived by email. The person also sent an email to let me know it was approved.

Regarding tracking your application, apparently this link below is the correct one to use:

https://creatorapp.zohopublic.com/r...T4H62350OmSF0sjmEN1DCTBCnjN8w0DZe06AtJms

USVI COVID requirements for entry from a foreign country are controlled by the CDC, not by the USVI. So, BVI policies will not influence them. The BVI seems to have been pretty independent throughout the pandemic, so I imagine they’ll continue to set requirements based on local conditions, but it would be great if they only required proof of vaccination.

I doubt that will happen anytime soon. As we all saw during the Omicron outbreak, plenty of vaccinated people will caught COVID, got sick, and most likely spread it to others. It's in our best interest to keep infected persons out of the territory and testing is the only way to do that.

And before people start jumping on me, yes, I understand vaccinated people have more mild symptoms but I can tell you I personally know vaccinated persons who were sick and it still sucked.

The current CDC policy only governs entry by air from a Foreign country. Rules for entry from US flights and international ferries have been created by the USVI. Under CDC guidelines you can fly to and from the USVI from the US and ferry into the USVI without any vaccine or testing requirements.

We’re in the same situation. Could you tell me what there email is that you sent it to?

The USVI has since corrected that initial publication that indicated a 5 day window for international air arrivals. It is indeed controlled by the CDC guidance and they confirmed that it should be one day, not 5 days. They have now updated the pages at USVIUpdate.com and the portal itself. Arrivals by sea (ferry, water taxi) still have a 5 day testing window.