Cuba has strengthened Covid-19 border controls in an effort to halt the ongoing outbreak of the extremely contagious Omicron variant. The increase in cases coincides with the return of international flights in mid-November and the start of the holiday season.

International visitors to Cuba will now be required to produce confirmation of immunization and negative PCR (polymerase chain reaction) testing done within 72 hours of arrival. According to the Ministry of Public Health, random PCR tests will also be undertaken at the country's airports.

When visiting the Caribbean island, children under the age of 12 will not be needed to produce proof of immunization. Meanwhile, all travellers flying into Cuba from South Africa, Lesotho, Botswana, Eswatini, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, and Mozambique must pay for a week's stay at authorized quarantine hotels.

On December 8, 2021, Cuba reported its first incidence of the Omicron form after a healthcare worker who had visited Mozambique tested positive. According to the Ministry, 92 cases of the new strain have been reported on the island nation thus far. In the last 24 hours, 967 new Covid cases have been reported in the Caribbean island, with no fatalities.  The total number of cases and deaths in Cuba were 969,138 and 8,324, respectively.

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