GBTA Calls for Clear, Consistent Approach to Travel Restrictions

As regions and governments across the globe assess the potential impact of the fast-emerging omicron variant of COVID-19, and consider future steps to be taken, the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) continues to encourage a clear, consistent and thoughtful approach, especially in terms of keeping country borders open to travelers.

According to the GBTA, any actions taken should focus on vaccination or recovery status and individual traveler risk, instead of broad-reaching travel restrictions or border shutdowns. The organization calls for using consistent guidance and protocols worldwide for determining actions that would restrict or ban travel domestically and internationally related to new COVID-19 developments such as omicron and potential future variants.

The GBTA also continues to urge governments to take into consideration the difference between business travel and leisure travel, especially when it comes to keeping borders open for international travel and resuming operations. A recent GBTA survey of business travelers worldwide revealed that 91 percent of the respondents were fully or partially vaccinated.

Current mitigation strategies should prevail with regards to air travel, such as increasing vaccination rates, testing, increased availability of vaccines and boosters, and the enforcement of the mask mandate in airports and on flights.

In a press release, Suzanne Neufang, CEO of GBTA, said, “Travel bans, border closures and quarantines have greatly impacted business travel and, therefore, the world’s ability to do business. According to GBTA’s recent Business Travel Index, after declining almost 54 percent in 2020 to $661 billion, global business travel expenditures are only expected to rebound 14 percent in 2021 to $754 billion, due to the ongoing pandemic—with some regions such as western Europe seeing a further 3.8 percent erosion in 2021 compared to 2020.”

“As we continue to take a long view of COVID-19, the random opening and closing of global borders has not been shown to be neither a factor in mitigating the virus nor sustainable due to increased impacts to economic and supply chain recovery,” Neufang added. “We encourage countries and governments to work collectively to pursue consistent policies that avoid new travel bans, and instead to focus on individual traveler risk, increased vaccinations and ongoing testing protocols. The more people who are vaccinated and with appropriate testing protocols in place, the more safely and consistently business travel can return, along with a robust return to doing business.”

For more information, visit www.gbta.org.

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