After another day of registering 0 COVID-19 cases in Malta, Israel and 40 US states and territories have been added to Malta's amber list, meaning travellers will not have to quarantine upon their return to the island. However, travellers from these countries and territories must still present a negative PCR test taken not later than 72 hours from arrival on the island or in the case of Maltese travellers, a vaccine certificate.

The update comes after Malta announced that it will be welcoming tourism from 51 countries as of 1 June.

The inclusions of Israel and the 40 US states marks the first time travel to both countries has been allowed since the pandemic hit in March 2020.

The 40 US states and territories are: Washington, Oregon, Louisiana, Arizona, West Virginia, Colorado, North Dakota, Indiana, Georgia, Texas, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Tennessee, Iowa, Nebraska, Ohio, South Carolina, New Mexico, Florida, Virginia, Maine, South Dakota, Michigan, Illinois, Delaware, Wisconsin, Puerto Rico, Hawaii, New Jersey, Minnesota, Connecticut, Alaska, New Hampshire, Maryland, New York, Rhode Island, District of Columbia, Massachusetts, Vermont, California.

Malta is on track to continue its strong vaccination programme, being amongst the best in the world and being the EU country having the most vaccinated residents in the EU. In fact, this is the third time that Malta has registered 0 daily active cases over the past few days, and the total active cases amount to just 51 to date.