Dear Cornell students, staff, and faculty abroad,

We wanted to connect with our Cornell community abroad to follow up on President Trump’s Proclamation banning certain travel from Europe to the United States for 30 days, effective this Friday, March 13, at midnight EST. For the purposes of this Proclamation, Europe is defined as the Schengen Area and exclusive of the United Kingdom. This latest development will inevitably create uncertainties for many. Please know that we are working hard to understand the full implications of the new restrictions and offer support.

The impending ban applies to foreign nationals only. If you are a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, you may return to the United States before or after March 13, but if you depart from or travel through Europe (as well as other affected areas), you may be subject to airport evaluations and restrictions. It is likely that all travelers from Europe—even U.S. nationals—who travel later than Friday, March 13, will be required to self-quarantine for up to 14 days. 

We realize that the COVID-19 situation—recently labeled a pandemic by the World Health Organization—is likely to cause significant uncertainty and stress. We are not requiring that you leave your away locations if you feel comfortable and well-cared for, but we understand that many of you may now prefer to return to the United States.

If you are abroad and want to return sooner than intended to the United States or to your home country, we recommend contacting the airline with which you booked your original return ticket (if you have one) and inquiring about a change fee or new booking. As flight restrictions are put in place, you may find a return home will require multiple layovers or selecting from limited options. If you find yourself unable to make these arrangements on your own, please reach out to intlsafety@cornell.edu and we will explore options. We are keeping an eye on the flight-booking situation and also investigating alternate possibilities.

If you are a student and would like to change your response to the survey we sent out last week, please access the survey again and fill out a new entry. Please try to do this by Friday, March 13, no later than midnight EST to allow us to support you most effectively.

Please take care of yourselves! Checkin with your loved ones and friends, and stay in touch with us on campus. You can reach out to Education Abroad at abroad@cornell.edu with questions about study abroad, or to vice provost Wolford at vpia@cornell.edu if you have any other questions.

We will be in touch again with any new developments.

Be well,

Wendy Wolford, vice provost of international affairs
Brandon Lanners, executive director, office of global learning
Chris Cook, manager, international travel health and safety