73 percent of the approximately 18,000 passengers who have arrived at the Canary Islands airports from Spanish territory between Friday and Sunday have complied with the presentation of the negative COVID-19 diagnostic test at the control points installed in the islands' airports, as reported by the Ministry of Health of the Government of the Canary Islands. This means that more than 13,000 arrived with the test, while almost 5,000 did not.
Since last Friday and until January 10, the Order of the Minister of Health, Blas Trujillo, regarding the performance of screenings to contain the transmission of SARSCOV-2, through diagnostic tests of active infection (PDIA) to passengers entering the Canary Islands from the rest of the national territory, by air or sea, remains in force.
The certificate must be presented at the control posts established for this purpose by the Ministry in the six Canary Islands airports that receive national flights. Travelers who transfer airports between islands from national flights must go to the control of the first airport where they disembark to present their negative diagnostic test certificate.
Travelers who do not present the certificate are identified, registered and summoned to perform isolation until a negative result of a diagnostic test is obtained at the destination.
The diagnostic tests for active infection admitted, at the passenger's choice, are: PCR (RT-PCR of COVID-19); rapid SARS-CoV-2 antigen detection tests with a specificity of more than 97% and a sensitivity of more than 80%, in accordance with the corresponding approval of a country of the European Union or the European Economic Area, and Transcription Mediated Amplification (TMA).
The Ministry of Health reminds that the diagnostic test will be free for travelers residing in the Canary Islands who come from the rest of the autonomous communities and perform the test in the Eurofins Megalab centers, implemented throughout the peninsular territory, arranged by the Canary Health Service for this purpose.
The documentary evidence of the test must be the original, written in Spanish, in QR format, paper or electronic and must indicate the name of the traveler, passport or ID number, date of the test, identification and contact information of the authorized health center that performs the test, technique used and negative result of the test. In the case of antigen tests, the approved specificity and sensitivity must also be reflected.
Interested parties or laboratories, with the express authorization of the interested parties, will send the analytical results electronically to the Canary Health Service, to the address pdiasviajes@gobiernodecanarias.org, prior to their arrival in the Canary Islands.
In the cases of express authorization for data processing, the remission of the results will be the obligation of the laboratories. In the cases in which such express authorization is not granted, the remission of the results will be the obligation of the interested parties, who must send the documentary evidence of the test to the indicated email address, stating in the subject of the email the flight or crossing number and the date of arrival thereof.
Performing the test at destination
The Ministry of Health has an operation of Covid-19 control points in the six Canary Islands airports that operate with national flights in which the accreditation of the PDIA result is requested.
In the exceptional case that the passenger has not performed the diagnostic test in the 72 hours prior to arrival, they must isolate themselves in their residence and perform it in the 72 hours following their arrival, and must send the result to the SCS, through the enabled mail. Isolation must be maintained until a negative diagnostic test is obtained and submitted or, where appropriate, epidemiological discharge. Residents may take this test free of charge, for which they must call 900 112 061.
Those who do not perform the PDIA must keep isolation in their residence for 10 days and are exposed to the foreseen sanction. Travel agencies, tour operators and air or maritime transport companies and any other agent that sells tickets must inform passengers, at the beginning of the ticket sales process to the Canary Islands, of the obligations arising from the Order.
Request an appointment in advance at origin
It is recalled that the SCS has signed an agreement with a network of laboratories with 68 locations throughout the national territory and it is necessary to make an appointment for the performance of the test in the laboratory closest to the address to which you are going to go or at 911 087 080.
The traveler must present at the time of the test the printed supporting documents (test voucher downloadable on the web, photocopy of the ID or residence certificate and photocopy of the flight voucher to the Islands).
Travelers residing in the Canary Islands can consult the list of laboratories with addresses and telephone numbers and download the free test voucher, on the website of the Ministry of Health.
