Aruba has launched a new service that eliminates the need to make travelers wait for their PCR test results to be manually verified as well as the need to upload test certificates. Now, in partnership with OK2Roam, travelers can authorize an approved laboratory to send their negative test result directly to Aruba’s Embarkation-Disembarkation (ED) card entry platform and be confident that it will be instantly accepted.
As part of the entry process to Aruba, the ED card registration is mandatory for all travelers, including minors and infants. Proof of a negative PCR test, within 72 hours prior to entering the country, is also required of all travelers over the age of 11, including those already vaccinated.
The new service is being provided by VFS Global, which has built an international network of government-approved COVID-19 testing laboratories, and OK2Roam, which is providing a secure data connection between the lab network and Aruba’s online ED entry platform. Initially, it will be available in Canada and the U.S., from Stage Zero Life Sciences and from Same Day Health. Travelers will have the choice of taking a video-supervised saliva test in the comfort of their own home or going to a test center in more than 50 locations across the U.S.
Currently, the biggest challenge for many departments of health and border-security forces—as they are responsible for physically inspecting PCR tests prior to granting access—is that they must manage the trade-off between a rigorous review and swift response time for travelers. However, with this new approach, with travelers’ consent, PCR test results can be fed directly from a trusted laboratory to the Aruban Immigration Authority, via OK2Roam’s secure technical platform.
Danguillaume Oduber, Aruba’s Minister of Tourism and Public Health, said in a press statement, “Throughout the pandemic, and even before, Aruba has been keen to embrace the latest technology to make our destination more welcoming and people’s travel experience more seamless. This excellent idea, which we are delighted to pioneer with OK2Roam and VFS Global, also has the advantage that it will likely save us time, money and administrative complexity too.”
“We are eager to see our project with OK2Roam and Aruba succeed,” added Chris Dix, head of business development, VFS Global, in press materials, “Once it is successfully launched and delivers the projected benefits, we are confident of being able to help many of our client governments make their borders more efficient and more bio-secure.”
David Tarsh, CEO & Co-Founder, OK2Roam said in a press statement, “Recent research from IATA validates our approach: passengers loath queuing; and 73 percent of them would willingly share their biometric data to receive a better travel experience. With Aruba, we are taking the world one step closer to the World Travel & Tourism Council’s vision of a seamless traveler journey, enabled by the latest technology.”
You can book your client’s test by visiting vfsglobal.com/aruba. The new service is not limited to any particular airline or airport. All travellers can use it, provided they can test with a participating lab.
For more information, visit aruba.com.
In addition, the U.K. has also recently updated its entry protocols, as has Chile.
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