[ASK1945]

Senator Gold – you started this thread last week and were due to travel on Saturday. You wrote “I understand this to mean that if took the test on 13 January, but receive my results after 10.50hrs GMT on 14 January I satisfy their requirements“.

What did you do? Lawhore suggests that the lack of words “laboratory tested” (or something similar) stipulated on the website means the law does not require this. Did it?

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MartynSinclair

[SenatorGold]

@ASK1945 – many thanks, I’ve been meaning to give an update.

On my first reading of the Polish regulations, I had understood them to mean only PCR tests were acceptable. It was only when I read the information provided by BA did I see that lateral flow tests were acceptable. I hadn’t considered that a home administered test would be acceptable.

Verifly for a trip to Poland works only on the basis of a PCR test.

Although I had difficulty initially in completing Verify with a test administered late on Thursday 13 January but with the results provided within 24 hours of my arrival on Saturday 15 January in Warsaw, later I was able to satisfy Verifly’s requirements and I receive the green light from them.

More confusingly, when I completed the Polish passenger locator form it asked if I had taken a test within 48 (not 24) hours.

However, in order to be on the safe side I took a lateral flow test at Terminal 5 on the morning of my departure. With Verifly I was able to check in without any problems and within a few minutes of being in the lounge I received an email with the results of my lateral flow test.

When I arrived in Warsaw I showed the border official a copy of the lateral flow test results.

I’ve searched the Polish authorities’ website. It takes some searching to find confirmation that a lateral flow test is acceptable. In fact it says that it’s sufficient to take a PCR or lateral flow test 48 hours in advance of arrival to exempt you from quarantine. It doesn’t say anything to suggest that a self-administered test is acceptable.

Probably the regulations could have been more clearly drafted or at least better translated into English as to what is required.

Having seen the tone of some of the comments posted by one forum member, I really rather regret making my original post.

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ASK1945, GivingupBA

[GivingupBA]

SenatorGold, you said “….I really rather regret making my original post”, I understand of course but please don’t regret it, thank you for posting. What you posted is all useful and interesting.

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cwoodward, dutchyankee, SenatorGold

[ASK1945]

[quote quote=1198455]Having seen the tone of some of the comments posted by one forum member, I really rather regret making my original post.[/quote]

I agree with GivingupBA. There is one member who persists in making aggressive posts. Just ignore.

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dutchyankee, GivingupBA

[SenatorGold]

These are two encouraging replies which I appreciate. I was interested to learn that dutchyankee (a longtime poster here) is living in Poland (as I once did) as like me he has much experience of Africa.

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dutchyankee, GivingupBA

[LaWhore]

SenatorGold. Absence of information isn’t an evidence of a requirement. Following on from your logic, can we deduct that the tests must be performed using a nasal swab as there are no suggestions throat swabs are acceptable?

The Polish government website lists a requirement to perform a test within 24 hours before arrival when travelling from outside Schengen zone. Can you provide the source of your information as to the 48 hour time window when travelling from outside Schengen?

[MartynSinclair]

Irrespective of the tone of this thread, it highlights the continuing complexities of understanding exactly what covid test is needed and whether it can be self or laboratory style test. The testing regime must become easier to understand or better still, consideration to stopping the pre flight testing altogether.

Currently, I do take AKS1945 strategy, if in doubt take the best one you can to ensure you get a boarding card. Luckily for Malta next week, nothing is needed…. (today)…

Thanks SenatorGold for starting this thread….

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dutchyankee, ASK1945, Tom Otley

[dutchyankee]

@ASK1945, thanks, but I actually wont dignify the whore, sorry, LaWhore, with a reply as he/she is simply doing what he/she does to create a certain atmosphere and to try to either be clever or funny, neither of which he/she pulls off well, instead just being argumentative and nasty, truly living up to his/her name.

As for travelling to Poland, the authorities meet all arrivals (bar most domestic arrivals), and it is best to have a professionally documented CoVid test (with a negative result) to hand if arriving from outside the Schengen area, EU or Turkey. Arriving from within the EU, Schengen and Turkey just proof of fully vaccinated status is sufficient. In all cases a PLF must be completed either on line or in paper form as handed to you prior to arrival by cabin crew.

I’ve always viewed this forum as a means to inform and assist fellow travellers, amongst many things, and should not be used as a place to advise people stupidly simply because a government website might be ambiguous. Arriving in Poland with a home administered test with no professional proof documenting the veracity of the test results will likely see that traveller in mandatory quarantine. Good luck taking the Polish government to court over ambiguity. Best to be safe and and to have appropriate documents to hand.

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Montysaurus, SimonRowberry, MartynSinclair, ASK1945, DavidSmith2

[ASK1945]

[quote quote=1198520]As for travelling to Poland, the authorities meet all arrivals (bar most domestic arrivals), and it is best to have a professionally documented CoVid test (with a negative result) to hand if arriving from outside the Schengen area, EU or Turkey.[/quote]

Thanks dutchyankee. My experience arriving in Greece, albeit three months ago now, was exactly the same. Getting off the plane, before immigration, a chap checked every passenger’s paper-based “credentials”. Most, such as us, were just directed straight through to border control, but others (including all who just showed their phones) were sent in another direction to a different part of the terminal. I have often wondered what these people didn’t have that was necessary and what happened to them.

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dutchyankee, Tom Otley, MartynSinclair

[russyyz]

No one has mentioned the fact that, in my understanding, your airline will not allow you to check-in without the appropriate testing requirement. Of course, that begs me to ask why they even have airport testing upon arrival if everyone had to prove neg result prior to getting on the plane. If anyone can explain that would help as, up until now, I have avoided flying internationally due to these types of confusions. And I’m dying to get travelling again!

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SimonRowberry, Tom Otley

[DavidSmith2]

[postquote quote=1198813]

Airlines generally enforce the restrictions in place in the destination country. Currently, BA do not require any proof of a pre-departure test in order to fly to the UK as the UK does not require it (they do of course require proof that you have booked your post-arrival test, although it seems that will shortly be changing too).

For flying from the UK to Ghana however. a pre=departure test is required, as well as pre-paid testing on arrival, as this is what the country requires. This is because tests may be done up to 72 hours before departure and there is a significant chance you may have contracted COVID over this period. So it is akin to ‘belts and braces’. I can see the value of both tests.

The problems arise from regular changes to regimes, the types of tests (and proofs of vaccination) that are accepted and the hassle/cost involved. Personally, a greater degree of certainty of requirements and less frequent changes to regimes would certainly be good. A current example is the new 270 day rule which applies in some (but not all) EU member states, but is more or less unknown in the UK and US.

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ViajeroUK, dutchyankee, Tom Otley

[SimonRowberry]

David – Finnair require proof of a pre-departure test at check-in at LHR, as this is a requirement for entry into Finland. This led to quite long check-in queues in T3 when I was flying to HEL a few weeks ago.

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