Last week, under instruction from the central government, the Bali provincial government announced a PCR swab test requirement for air travelers coming to Bali and an antigen rapid test requirement for those traveling via other modes of transportation. On Friday, Bali officials say the test results ⁠— for both PCR swab tests and antigen rapid tests ⁠— are valid for seven days instead of the two days as announced earlier.

However, the National COVID-19 Task Force on Dec. 19 issued a circular announcing that the rapid antigen test results are valid for three days on all forms of public and private transportation. The rule applies to all trips into and within Java and Bali. 

Children under the age of 12 who are traveling with their parents are not required to undergo any COVID-19 screening. All travelers are required to electronically fill in the Health Alert Card (eHAC).

The circular set the Christmas and New Year break period to begin on Dec. 19 and last until Jan. 8, when officials in Bali previously said that the requirements are applicable until Jan. 4. In fact, the same announcement is still up on the Bali provincial government website at the time of publication, as you can see in the screengrab below:

The antigen rapid test, also known as antigen swab test, is conducted by taking samples of secretions from the nose and throat to detect the presence of certain viral antigens that indicate a current viral infection. The antigen swab test, which is widely available for around IDR250K (US$17.61), is more expensive than the antibody rapid test, but it’s cheaper than the PCR swab test and is said to be able to detect the coronavirus in just 15 minutes. In general, however, the test is not considered to be as accurate as the PCR swab test.

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