Starting Saturday, August 29, 2020, the Mass Department of Public Health added four more states to its list of lower-risk states that are exempt from the restrictions in Governor Charlie Baker’s travel order, bringing the total number of lower-risk states to ten.
Travelers entering Massachusetts from Pennsylvania, Delaware, West Virginia and Colorado are no longer required to quarantine for 14 days upon arrival or produce a negative COVID-19 test upon arrival.
Rhode Island remains the only state in New England on which Massachusetts imposes travel restrictions, although the quarantine-or-test requirement does not apply to those commuting for work or errands or individuals who pass through Rhode Island while traveling from a lower-risk state.
Current Travel Order
The Commonwealth has made great progress to slow the spread of COVID-19 and gradually re-open the economy, and all visitors have a responsibility to help us keep transmission levels as low as possible.
Please visit the mass.gov page about this COVID-19 Travel Order for complete information on current travel orders.
The following is a brief overview of some pertinent information related to this order:
Massachusetts Travel Form
All visitors entering Massachusetts, including returning residents, who do not meet an exemption, are required to:
- Complete the Massachusetts Travel Form prior to arrival, unless you are visiting from a lower-risk state designated by the Department of Public Health.
- Quarantine for 14 days or produce a negative COVID-19 test result that has been administered up to 72-hours prior to your arrival in Massachusetts.
- If your COVID-19 test result has not been received prior to arrival, visitors, and residents must quarantine until they receive a negative test result.
- Failure to comply may result in a $500 fine per day.
Lower-Risk States
Travelers from COVID-19 lower-risk States are not required to fill out the Massachusetts Traveler Form and do not need to quarantine. States are included on the list based on meeting two criteria: average daily cases per 100K below 6 AND positive test rate below 5%, both measured as a 7-day rolling average. Data is from covidexitstrategy.org as of July 21, 2020.
The current list of COVID-19 lower-risk states includes:
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Hawaii
- Maine
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New York
- Pennsylvania
- Vermont
- West Virginia
Massachusetts residents are urged to limit any out-of-State travel only to States designated as COVID-19 lower-risk States.
Other requirements or exemptions may apply, please visit the mass.gov page about this COVID-19 Travel Order for complete information.
