On July 1st the European Union will reopen its external borders. But, not to Americans. Brussels has decided to leave US travelers out, the NYT reveals.

European leaders see the rapid growth of Covid-19 infections in the United States as a reason to close Europe to American travel. The banned list will be revisited every 2 weeks.

Since the first cases of coronavirus were confirmed in the US in mid-March, the borders of the country have been closed, unless for exceptional repatriation flights or trips considered “essential.”

This does not necessarily mean that Portugal will be legally required to prohibit US visitors, but doing so could result in being closed out of access to Europe.

With more than 2.3 million registered cases, the USA remains the country most affected by the pandemic. the US set a record for new cases the same day the EU decided on travel restrictions. On Friday, June 26, the US recorded more than 40,000 new cases. Portugal saw just 300 new cases.