Sabah is now open for interstate travel, certified negative COVID-19 test result required for entry

As announced earlier, the Sabah state government has reopened its borders for interstate travel effective 1st November 2021. Although interstate travel restrictions were lifted by the federal government last month, the east Malaysian state decided to defer its border reopening as less than 70% of its adult population were fully vaccinated at the time.

According to Sabah Local Government and Housing Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun, the state’s COVID-19 disaster committee has decided that police and state approval will no longer be required for non-Sabahans entering the state effective 1st November.

Based on the SOP for Malaysians entering from West Malaysia, Sarawak, and Labuan, all individuals must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and must produce a negative COVID-19 RT-PCR or RTK-Ag (Swab or Saliva) test. The SOP states that the COVID-19 test must be conducted by a certified clinic or lab that is registered under the Ministry of Health. The RTK-Ag and RT-PCR test results are only valid for 3 days after the collection of the sample.

Masidi also confirmed that rapid self-test kits that are currently sold at pharmacies and supermarkets are not accepted at the moment. The RTK-Ag tests must be conducted in front of a doctor or medical personnel and the results must be certified accordingly.

Teens aged between 12 to 18 years old are allowed to enter but must be vaccinated with at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. For children below 12 years old, they must be accompanied by a parent or guardian who is fully vaccinated. Individuals who can’t get vaccinated on health grounds must produce a medical document that’s issued by a certified medical practitioner. Travellers will be required to fill up an eHealth Declaration Form here.

The SOP also states that domestic travellers with symptoms may be ordered to conduct a mandatory quarantine for 10 days. For international travellers, mandatory quarantine is still required and there’s the option for home quarantine which is subject to approval.

According to COVIDNow, Sabah has fully vaccinated 73.3% of its adult population or 57.4% of its total population. On 1st November, the state recorded 392 new COVID-19 cases and it has been recording less than 1,000 new cases daily since 30th September.

[ SOURCE 2 ]