The authorities are in the process of drafting COVID-19 rules for arrivals from high-risk countries but it will be some days before the new procedures are applied, Times of Malta is informed.

Health Minister Chris Fearne said on Wednesday that the government was planning to require passengers from these countries to produce a certificate confirming they are not infected with coronavirus.

Without a certificate in hand, they would be subject to a swab test. The minister did not name the countries.

Health sources said talks were still under way on the procedures and the list of applicable countries.

Travellers currently abroad told Times of Malta they were worried about the new procedures coming into force while they were away.

Some said they feared they would not be provided any direction from the authorities if new rules were suddenly introduced before they returned.

The health sources, however, said that at present, no new measures are being imposed on travellers.

Meanwhile, as Malta registered a record 55 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, more countries removed the island from their safe travel lists, imposing quarantine and other restrictions on arrivals.

As of Friday, all passengers from Malta arriving in Italy must either present a negative coronavirus test, taken 72 hours before departure, or do the test within 48 hours and quarantine until the result is out. It is yet to be seen whether the rules to be imposed by Malta on incoming passengers will follow a similar procedure.

European countries with restrictions on Malta arrivals. Map: Christian Busuttil

Other countries, like the Netherlands and Belgium, do not yet require tests from those coming back from Malta but travellers must self-isolate for 14 days. The has also removed Malta from England’s safe travel corridor list introducing quarantine rules for returning travellers.

Meanwhile, Malta has continued to climb the European table of new cases per 100,000 people, reaching the fourth-highest rate in Europe.

According to Thursday'supdate from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, Malta had around 74.8 cases per 100,000 people. Only Spain, Luxembourg and Romania had higher figures.

The rate is being used by health authorities in Europe when deciding on safe travel destinations.

80 per cent drop in July passengers

Malta International Airport saw just 152,818 passenger movements in July as COVID-19 travel restrictions started to be gradually lifted after three months.

MIA said passenger movements dropped by just over 80% when compared to July 2019.

The full-month arrivals were equivalent to the number of passengers registered in the first week of July 2019.

The government eased restrictions for travel to 21 ‘safe’ countries on July 1, removing all restrictions to most countries on July 15.

MIA said there were drops of 70.3% and 72.1% in aircraft movements and seat capacity respectively last month.

The seat load factor for the month, measuring the percentage of occupied seats on flights operated to and from the airport, stood at 59.7%.

A passenger performance analysis conducted by Airports Council International showed that, on average, European airports registered a 78% decrease in passenger numbers in July. 

Italy, Germany, the United Kingdom and France reported drops that ranged between 74% and 87%.