American traveling to Europe during COVID-19 times
August 28, 2020 11:52 AM Subscribe
I am an US-born American citizen living in California. My father is a Hungarian/American dual citizen living in Budapest. He is currently dying of non-COIVD causes in a Budapest hospital. Can I go to him?
I haven't been following the travel restriction updates in great detail but I know that Americans were restricted from traveling to Europe a few months ago. Are they still? Are there exemptions for dying family members?
I don't have Hungarian citizenship but I imagine I am eligible through having a Hungarian-born father. Can I expedite a Hungarian passport and travel on that? He is in the ICU so there isn't much time. Would there be a quarantine period upon arrival?
My mind is a whirlwind and trying to research this on my own is difficult because I can't focus and my mind keeps skipping over the words without absorbing them.
I haven't been following the travel restriction updates in great detail but I know that Americans were restricted from traveling to Europe a few months ago. Are they still? Are there exemptions for dying family members?
I don't have Hungarian citizenship but I imagine I am eligible through having a Hungarian-born father. Can I expedite a Hungarian passport and travel on that? He is in the ICU so there isn't much time. Would there be a quarantine period upon arrival?
My mind is a whirlwind and trying to research this on my own is difficult because I can't focus and my mind keeps skipping over the words without absorbing them.
Hungary classifies the US as a "yellow" country, this means, according to Budapest Airport:
posted by vacapinta at 12:04 PM on August 28, 2020 [4 favorites]
The page from the US Embassy in Hungary says basically the same thing (only difference is that as a relative of a Hungarian citizen you should still be able to be admitted to Hungary even if you are coming from a "Red" country).
posted by mskyle at 12:09 PM on August 28, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by mskyle at 12:09 PM on August 28, 2020 [2 favorites]
I'm sorry to hear about your father.
You should unfortunately be aware that Hungary has recently (in the last 24 hours or so) announced that as of September 1 it is implementing a strict border closure -- many websites with information about travel restrictions may not yet be updated and the exact conditions and exceptions do not seem to have been made clear yet.
On the citizenship angle, it does appear that you are eligible for Hungarian citizenship as the child of a Hungarian citizenship who emigrated to the US, with some minor exceptions.
However, I wouldn't pursue this angle (right now anyway, assuming time is of the essence) -- to apply for a Hungarian passport you need to be able to prove your Hungarian citizenship, for which you would need to apply for verification -- in other words this is unlikely to be a fast process, especially now when many services may not be available.
posted by andrewesque at 12:24 PM on August 28, 2020
You should unfortunately be aware that Hungary has recently (in the last 24 hours or so) announced that as of September 1 it is implementing a strict border closure -- many websites with information about travel restrictions may not yet be updated and the exact conditions and exceptions do not seem to have been made clear yet.
On the citizenship angle, it does appear that you are eligible for Hungarian citizenship as the child of a Hungarian citizenship who emigrated to the US, with some minor exceptions.
However, I wouldn't pursue this angle (right now anyway, assuming time is of the essence) -- to apply for a Hungarian passport you need to be able to prove your Hungarian citizenship, for which you would need to apply for verification -- in other words this is unlikely to be a fast process, especially now when many services may not be available.
posted by andrewesque at 12:24 PM on August 28, 2020
Note also that you'll have to connect through another airport, which may be in another country which has its own rules. This recent article goes through the rules for US citizens/residents transiting through some major European airports. Amsterdam, Heathrow, Gatwick, Vienna, Istanbul, or Frankfurt look like good bets on that list; the only problematic one looks like CDG (Paris).
In all of these cases, though, you will need to ensure that you don't have to go through customs, and that your layover is less than 24 hours. The main way this can happen is if you buy two separate tickets through a third-party travel website, which (in normal times) would require you to claim & re-check your luggage. If you buy a ticket direct from a single airline, you will generally be OK on this front.
You might also be able to get a connection via JFK or Newark, which would eliminate this problem.
Good luck, and my condolences. This would be a difficult situation in the best of times, and we are not in the best of times.
posted by Johnny Assay at 12:25 PM on August 28, 2020 [1 favorite]
In all of these cases, though, you will need to ensure that you don't have to go through customs, and that your layover is less than 24 hours. The main way this can happen is if you buy two separate tickets through a third-party travel website, which (in normal times) would require you to claim & re-check your luggage. If you buy a ticket direct from a single airline, you will generally be OK on this front.
You might also be able to get a connection via JFK or Newark, which would eliminate this problem.
Good luck, and my condolences. This would be a difficult situation in the best of times, and we are not in the best of times.
posted by Johnny Assay at 12:25 PM on August 28, 2020 [1 favorite]
In all of these cases, though, you will need to ensure that you don't have to go through customs
An important clarification on this (that the OP may/probably already knows but just in case!) --
If you fly from the US via Amsterdam, Vienna, Frankfurt or Paris on the way to Hungary, you must clear immigration checks/passport checks at those airports (what people almost always mean when they say "clear customs").
This is regardless of whether you buy your flights on one ticket or multiple tickets. Hungary (and the Netherlands, Austria, Germany and France, among other states) is a Schengen state and when you enter the Schengen area you always clear passport control at the first point of entry.
This problem does not (necessarily) arise if you connect via Heathrow, Dublin or Istanbul, as the UK, Ireland, and Turkey are not Schengen states.
posted by andrewesque at 12:31 PM on August 28, 2020 [1 favorite]
An important clarification on this (that the OP may/probably already knows but just in case!) --
If you fly from the US via Amsterdam, Vienna, Frankfurt or Paris on the way to Hungary, you must clear immigration checks/passport checks at those airports (what people almost always mean when they say "clear customs").
This is regardless of whether you buy your flights on one ticket or multiple tickets. Hungary (and the Netherlands, Austria, Germany and France, among other states) is a Schengen state and when you enter the Schengen area you always clear passport control at the first point of entry.
This problem does not (necessarily) arise if you connect via Heathrow, Dublin or Istanbul, as the UK, Ireland, and Turkey are not Schengen states.
posted by andrewesque at 12:31 PM on August 28, 2020 [1 favorite]
The official Re-Open EU page for Hungary says you're allowed in as a third-country national family member of an EU citizen:
Rules and Exceptions
the following persons are allowed to enter Hungary without restrictions:
- Hungarian nationals,
- EU nationals and nationals of EEA member states and Switzerland (see countries are classified as "green", "yellow" or "red" for restrictions),
- third country family members of the above mentioned persons,
However - I would ring the Hungarian embassy/consulate nearest you (in Washington DC their embassy phone number is (202) 362-6730) and try to speak to a person on the phone about your case, specifically asking them how you can prove your family status to anyone who would ask and what else is required.
Good luck - this sounds very stressful and I hope you can get there in time.
posted by mdonley at 1:22 PM on August 28, 2020 [4 favorites]
Rules and Exceptions
the following persons are allowed to enter Hungary without restrictions:
- Hungarian nationals,
- EU nationals and nationals of EEA member states and Switzerland (see countries are classified as "green", "yellow" or "red" for restrictions),
- third country family members of the above mentioned persons,
However - I would ring the Hungarian embassy/consulate nearest you (in Washington DC their embassy phone number is (202) 362-6730) and try to speak to a person on the phone about your case, specifically asking them how you can prove your family status to anyone who would ask and what else is required.
Good luck - this sounds very stressful and I hope you can get there in time.
posted by mdonley at 1:22 PM on August 28, 2020 [4 favorites]
There's also a Los Angeles consulate here, which you can call on (310) 473-9344. The after-hours emergency consular assistance number (which connects you to Budapest) is +36 8036 8036.
posted by mdonley at 1:32 PM on August 28, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by mdonley at 1:32 PM on August 28, 2020 [2 favorites]
A smallish part of my work in the last few months has involved looking at country's Covid-19 restrictions. I can't speak to Hungary specifically but I do want to flag a few things, some already mentioned:
- Transit is a huge issue, you must make sure you meet the requirements in the countries you are transiting through.
- With respect to mdonley's information: at least some countries only let third-country family members in if they are traveling with their relative who is a citizen. It's not clear from the link mdonley provided if that's the case for Hungary - I agree with their advice to try the embassy.
- Good sites include the IATA travel regulations map and your country's embassy or foreign affairs agency (e.g. Department of State). IATA has similar information to that provided by vacapinta above. But things change fast, often faster than these sites can update.
- I can't imagine that you'd get citizenship/passport in time for that to be any use to you.
Good luck, what an awful thing to be going through.
posted by Pink Frost at 1:57 PM on August 28, 2020
- Transit is a huge issue, you must make sure you meet the requirements in the countries you are transiting through.
- With respect to mdonley's information: at least some countries only let third-country family members in if they are traveling with their relative who is a citizen. It's not clear from the link mdonley provided if that's the case for Hungary - I agree with their advice to try the embassy.
- Good sites include the IATA travel regulations map and your country's embassy or foreign affairs agency (e.g. Department of State). IATA has similar information to that provided by vacapinta above. But things change fast, often faster than these sites can update.
- I can't imagine that you'd get citizenship/passport in time for that to be any use to you.
Good luck, what an awful thing to be going through.
posted by Pink Frost at 1:57 PM on August 28, 2020
Response by poster: Thank you everyone. The Washington DC Embassy is already closed for the weekend but I spoke to someone at the LA consulate at the number mdonley provided. They confirmed that the border is closing on September 1, so anyone seeking to enter must land by August 31 at midnight. They also confirmed the requirement for 2 negative tests 48 hours apart within 5 days of travel that vacapinta mentioned.
Looking at flights, it seems like I would need to depart Sunday Aug 30 to arrive by Monday Aug 31 at midnight. All the flights leaving Monday arrive Tuesday, which too late for the border closing. It's Friday afternoon now... I'm not sure I can get two COVID tests between now and Sunday and have them be 48 hours apart AND get their results in time to fly out Sunday.
That's not even including the fact that filtering out flights that fly through Charles de Gaulle or that require self-transfer (checking in again during the layover) triples the price.
The LA Consulate also confirmed that getting Hungarian citizenship through my father would take at least 1 year and they're not taking applications until October, so that's out.
It's looking very unlikely that I can make it. I have a call in to my doctor's office to ask about ordering COVID tests for me. When they call back I will ask about test results turnaround time and see if it's possible.
posted by Nickel at 2:26 PM on August 28, 2020
Looking at flights, it seems like I would need to depart Sunday Aug 30 to arrive by Monday Aug 31 at midnight. All the flights leaving Monday arrive Tuesday, which too late for the border closing. It's Friday afternoon now... I'm not sure I can get two COVID tests between now and Sunday and have them be 48 hours apart AND get their results in time to fly out Sunday.
That's not even including the fact that filtering out flights that fly through Charles de Gaulle or that require self-transfer (checking in again during the layover) triples the price.
The LA Consulate also confirmed that getting Hungarian citizenship through my father would take at least 1 year and they're not taking applications until October, so that's out.
It's looking very unlikely that I can make it. I have a call in to my doctor's office to ask about ordering COVID tests for me. When they call back I will ask about test results turnaround time and see if it's possible.
posted by Nickel at 2:26 PM on August 28, 2020
Response by poster: My kaiser doctor was able to rush me in for a test just now, but won’t order a second test because two tests isn’t deemed necessary by medical literature?? So follow up: does anyone know any community testing sites in the Oakland or surrounding area that I can go to without a doctor’s orders on Sunday afternoon?
posted by Nickel at 3:35 PM on August 28, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by Nickel at 3:35 PM on August 28, 2020 [1 favorite]
This list of test sites in Berkeley might have something for you? The self-test site at Berkeley Adult School offers testing on Sundays, but it seems like it might have closed last week--perhaps it has moved to a new location?
Good luck! What a tough situation.
posted by ogorki at 4:40 PM on August 28, 2020
Good luck! What a tough situation.
posted by ogorki at 4:40 PM on August 28, 2020
Question: one of the link above give the option of either two tests, 48 hours apart within past five days OR 14 day quarantine on arrival. Can you arrive, go into quarantine and then get the second test in Hungary? Sounds tricky but if it worked it would let you get on the plane.
Also, when you try to find a place with Sunday testing, make sure you check out how long it would take to get the results. It sounds like you need to have them with you when you get off the plane.
posted by metahawk at 5:13 PM on August 28, 2020
Also, when you try to find a place with Sunday testing, make sure you check out how long it would take to get the results. It sounds like you need to have them with you when you get off the plane.
posted by metahawk at 5:13 PM on August 28, 2020
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