Quarantine requirements for all travelers to Chile (UPDATE 2, Jan 7th)

[olafboswijk]

hi all,

allow me to briefly introduce myself before I ask my question.
I have been following the forum for a while, have picked up a lot here, so thanks for all the worthwhile contributions and info!

I am Dutch originally (from Amsterdam), and after a long time traveling from Canada down to Patagonia in our campervan we decided to settle in La Araucania last year, where we have bought a parcela and built a cabin last April. As my wife was pregnant and her father was ill (not covid related), we had to leave suddenly to be back here in the Netherlands to care for him. With our daughter also close to being born and the pandemic rapidly getting worse, we decided to stay for a while. We are now planning to fly back to Chile mid March (about to buy tickets). We have just been granted permanent residency a few days ago, but our daughter was born in the Netherlands, so we will have to start a new residency application for her.

My question: the Chilean regulations state we also need a negative PCR test for our daughter, who is now 5 months old, but in the Netherlands there is no policy to test this age group. And I imagine it being pretty terrifying for her, it was unpleasant to say the least when I got tested last week. Does anybody know the small print of this regulation? Am trying to find out if we can test her anyway and how this would work as I've also heard of specialized tests for small children where they have to chew on a cottonbud for 10mins to capture the virus. Any help is much appreciated.

[snobrd4life]

**editing original response because infants are special. thanks to the folks below for providing actual sources to assist.

[Donnybrook2]

According to Salud Responde from the Ministry of Health, children under 2 are exempt.

6.-¿Todos quienes ingresan al país deben contar con un PRC negativo, incluso los niños?
Se excluye de la obligatoriedad de contar con un PCR a los lactantes menores de 2 años.

This is the website:
https://saludresponde.minsal.cl/pregunt ... eros/#vel6

[eeuunikkeiexpat]

According to Salud Responde from the Ministry of Health, children under 2 are exempt.

6.-¿Todos quienes ingresan al país deben contar con un PRC negativo, incluso los niños?
Se excluye de la obligatoriedad de contar con un PCR a los lactantes menores de 2 años.

This is the website:
https://saludresponde.minsal.cl/pregunt ... eros/#vel6

Also from Timatic:

Passengers must have a medical certificate with a negative Coronavirus (COVID-19) PCR SARS-CoV-2 test, taken at most 72 hours before departure of the last direct flight to Chile.

This does not apply to passengers younger than 2 years.

[admin]

That is probably more of a practical matter.

ever see a doctor try to stick something up the nose of a squirming two year old?

[admin]

u.k., has banned travel for citizens of a bunch of south american countries, including Chile.

https://www.df.cl/noticias/economia-y-p ... 81648.html

[olafboswijk]

Passengers must have a medical certificate with a negative Coronavirus (COVID-19) PCR SARS-CoV-2 test, taken at most 72 hours before departure of the last direct flight to Chile.

This does not apply to passengers younger than 2 years.

[/quote]

thanks! it seems contradictory with this website (also from gobierno de Chile):
https://chile.travel/planviajarachile

Para ingresar a Chile ¿Todos deben contar con un PRC negativo, incluso los niños?
Efectivamente, ya que la normativa no discrimina entre adultos, niños o lactantes. Recordemos que todos pueden contraer la enfermedad y transmitirla.

[Donnybrook2]

Olaf, that is a tourism website, albeit official. I would take a printout of the Ministry of Health information to the airport. You can also ask them to check Timatic (the bible for airlines).

[StrawberryHeartsForever]

I have been checking the minsal website sporadically, at first it said everyone needed a test, and then a few days later changed it to everyone 2 years and over.

[olafboswijk]

Olaf, that is a tourism website, albeit official. I would take a printout of the Ministry of Health information to the airport. You can also ask them to check Timatic (the bible for airlines).

yes, i know, you'd think the rules would be the same as the same government makes them. thanks for the tip about the print out, will do that.

[helibel]

woo Hoo, I received my first shot of the Moderna vaccine last week and will get the second Booster on the 7th of February. Will I have to quarantine in March if we come to Chile?

[RuneTheChookcha]

woo Hoo, I received my first shot of the Moderna vaccine last week and will get the second Booster on the 7th of February. Will I have to quarantine in March if we come to Chile?

When asked [Sun, Jan 03, 2021, source*], "whether those who do get vaccinated can still pass the virus onto others", dr. Fauci told Newsweek: "That's a good question. We don't know that yet. We do not know if the vaccines that prevent clinical disease also prevent infection."
___
* https://www.newsweek.com/coronavirus-an ... el-1558303

When asked [Sun, Jan 03, 2021, same source], "What else do we not know about the virus?", dr. Fauci said: "We don't know what we don't know,"