US President Joe Biden will reimpose a number of travel bans that were repealed by his predecessor.
Mr Biden is also set to ban arrivals from South Africa, apparently over fears of the new coronavirus variant discovered in the country.
Donald Trump lifted travel restrictions between the US and Brazil and Europe two days before he left office – a decision Joe Biden will imminently rescind through an executive order.
The new president will announce the move on Monday, that will stop entry into the US from European Union countries, the UK, Brazil and South Africa.
It has been confirmed by the principal director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Dr Anne Schuchat, who said: “We are adding South Africa to the restricted list because of the concerning variant present that has already spread beyond South Africa.”
She added the agency was “putting in place this suite of measures to protect Americans and also to reduce the risk of these variants spreading and worsening the current pandemic”.
The CDC is concerned that vaccines may be less effective against the Covid-19 variant discovered in South Africa, adding it is up to 50% more infectious than other versions of the virus.
Mr Biden has been seen as taking swift action on Covid-19 during his early days in office, and has already signed executive orders imposing mandatory mask wearing and social distancing on government properties across the US.
The UK has also been mulling the idea of full border closures as part of the current lockdown, in an effort to limit the introduction of further variants into the country.
At the moment, flights arriving in the UK from South America and Portugal are banned, with all other arrivals required to quarantine for 10 days.
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