Germany lets children of many in US military community enter the country for the holidays
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KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany — Germany has partially lifted a months-old coronavirus travel ban on Americans to allow the children of members of the U.S. military community covered by the Status of Forces Agreement to spend the holidays in the country with their parents, Air Force officials said.
The children, whose parents must be service members, civilian employees or other individuals assigned to Germany, must be under 23, according to guidance posted Tuesday on Ramstein Air Base's website. They can enter Germany immediately and stay until Jan. 31, it said.
Allowing them to enter is “an exception to current COVID-related travel restrictions,” the document said. Americans were banned from traveling to Germany and most other European Union countries as the coronavirus spread rapidly around the U.S., which has the highest number of infections and deaths from the disease caused by the virus of any country.
The children have to comply with all coronavirus-related restrictions in the part of Germany where their parents are stationed, the guidance said.
Rheinland-Pfalz, which is home to tens of thousands of Americans, many of them assigned to Army and Air Force bases, including Ramstein, requires travelers from high-risk countries, such as the U.S., to quarantine for 10 days after arrival.
Like the rest of Germany, the state has banned large gatherings, requires face masks to be worn in many settings, encourages handwashing and social distancing, and is under partial lockdown until Dec. 20 at the earliest. Most, if not all of Germany's popular Christmas markets, have been canceled because of the virus, and restaurants are only offering takeout and delivery meals.
The U.S. military has even tougher coronavirus restrictions, including 14 days of quarantine for incoming personnel and their families. Under an 86th Airlift Wing order, children visiting family in Ramstein or other Air Force installations in the Kaiserslautern military community will be barred from base facilities such as food courts and shopping areas for the first 14 days in Germany, the document said.
But they can opt to be tested for the virus on the sixth day of their stay in Germany, it said. If they test negative, they can move about freely, on and off base.
The children must carry several documents with them during travel and present them to officials if asked. These include a copy of the orders, with the child’s name on them, assigning their parent to Germany. If the child isn’t on the parents’ orders, they should be accompanied by a birth certificate or a letter from the parent's chain of command confirming the family relationship, the document said.
“The intent of this requirement is to show that (a) the parent is assigned to Germany and (b) prove the relationship between the parent and child,” it said.
The children also need a valid U.S. passport; an ID card issued by the Defense Department; a statement from the parent’s chain of command saying the child will reside with parents while in Germany and abide by all German quarantine requirements; and a print-out of a completed online registration form for travelers from high-risk countries.
A list of the required documents and a template for the chain of command’s statement are posted on Ramstein’s website, in the COVID-19 section under travel restrictions.
“Failure to travel with the appropriate documentation may result in being denied boarding at the point of departure or denied entry upon arrival in Germany,” says the guidance, which is similar to information that was published online by the Army in early November and again last week, before being removed from public view.
The Army guidance covered American children in Germany and four other EU countries. Stars and Stripes asked Ramstein officials if there was guidance for other EU countries, including Italy, the U.K., Belgium and the Netherlands, and if the children could travel to Germany on the rotator, or had to purchase commercial airline tickets, but did not immediately receive replies.
zeitvogel.karin@stripes.com
Twitter: @StripesZeit
previous coverage
Traditional Christmas cookies hang from a stand at the Christmas market in Baden-Baden, Germany, on Dec. 24, 2019. Germany is partially lifting a travel ban on Americans to allow children whose parents have SOFA status and are assigned to the country to visit during the holidays, but most Christmas markets will be closed because of the coronavirus.
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