Nicosia, 19 July 2021 (MIA) – Starting Thursday, Cyprus will move North Macedonia into the Green Category of countries. Macedonian nationals will be allowed to travel to the island unrestricted, meaning without having to present negative test results or undergo quarantine, MIA reports from Athens. According to the new categorization of countries, released on Monday by Cypriot Ministry of Health, North Macedonia, Canada and Serbia have been upgraded from the Orange Category to the Green Category of countries. Cyprus has divided European Union member states and third countries in three categories based on their epidemiological situation: green, orange and yellow. Special rules apply for each category. Countries that are not mentioned in these categories are considered to belong in the Grey Category. Green Category countries are considered low risk and include North Macedonia and 27 other countries: Austria, Bulgaria, Germany, Estonia, Italy, Croatia, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Czech Republic, Monaco, Vatican City, Switzerland, Iceland, Norway, Australia, Jordan, Israel, Canada, New Zealand, Serbia, Singapore. Passengers coming from these countries are not required to hold a COVID-19 test certificate or self-isolate. As MIA previously reported, Cyprus moved North Macedonia on 8 July from the Red into the Orange Category. Passengers coming from Orange Category countries are required to undergo a PCR test within 72 hours prior to departure and possess a certificate showing a negative result. In regard to countries in the region, Bulgaria and Serbia are in the Green Category, Greece is in the Orange Category, while Albania, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina are in the Red Category. MIA reports that in regard to vaccinated tourists, the Health Ministry of Cyprus said that as of 10 May they are exempted from the obligation of laboratory testing and self-isolation/quarantine if they hold a valid certificate of vaccination issued by the following states: EU Member States, EEA Member States, Switzerland, Israel, United Kingdom, Russia, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Ukraine, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Belarus, Serbia, Qatar, Bahrein, United States of America, Armenia, Georgia, Canada and Kuwait. Moreover, they must be vaccinated either with one of the vaccines approved by the European Medicines Agency (Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Moderna, Johnson), or with the Sputnik V or Sinopharm vaccine and 14 days must have elapsed between the administration of the second dose of the vaccine and the date of travel. All passengers, regardless of the country’s category, are obliged to apply for the CyprusFlightPass form, available at https://cyprusflightpass.gov.cy/ , 48 hours before the departure of their flight. The Cypriot Ministry of Health stressed that all passengers can be subject to random testing regardless of where they come from. The categorization of countries, the Health Ministry added, is extremely dynamic and may be modified at any moment as the pandemic evolves and the epidemiological data changes. Therefore, new data will be announced and the list of countries will be updated frequently. List analysis shows that France, Denmark, Finland and Liechtenstein have been bumped from the Green to the Orange Category, while Malta from the Green to the Red Category. The new categorization of countries will take effect on 22 July 2021.