Germany plans quarantine for air arrivals from outside EU

Germany plans to insist that airline passengers arriving from non-EU countries go into quarantine for 14 days to reduce the risk of spreading the coronavirus, the Funke media group reported on Wednesday. A decision could be taken by Chancellor Angela Merkel's "crisis cabinet" as soon as Thursday and would affect the country's main airports such as Frankfurt, Munich, and Berlin, the media group reported.

Until now, people arriving from countries badly hit by the virus, including Iran, South Korea, Egypt, Italy, France, and the United States, have merely had to fill in a form, a situation that has triggered criticism. However, government ministers now think that differentiating between countries makes little sense given the extent of the infection, Funke media reported, without citing sources.

There was no immediate comment from the government. The government can make recommendations but quarantine questions are ultimately decided by the federal states.