Business celebrates the end of the entry ban

Since March 2020, the so-called “Travel Ban” has been a burden on German-American economic relations. For example, fewer machines and systems are exported than usual because experts for installation and maintenance are only allowed to fly overseas with special permits.

Billions in damage to German industry

In total, the US entry ban is likely to have caused additional costs in the billions for German industry. But now there is a gradual return to normal. “The abolition of the Travel Ban is very good news for investments, innovations and of course personal exchange, which is of fundamental importance in transatlantic economic relations,” said Car Association President Hildegard Müller to the Handelsblatt.

The top lobbyist of the German automotive industry assumes that business traffic will now pick up again and that trade will experience an “additional boost”. Alongside China, the USA is the most important sales and production location outside of Europe, Daimler, BMW and Volkswagen and their suppliers produce in the south of the USA.

Ulrich Ackermann, Head of Foreign Trade at the German Engineering Federation (VDMA), is also relieved: “The American entry restrictions for business travelers from the Schengen countries are finally going away. This will remove the currently biggest hurdle in bilateral trade from November, ”emphasized the VDMA expert.

Lufthansa boss Carsten Spohr reacted particularly pleased with the end of the Travel Ban. “The withdrawal of travel restrictions to the USA announced today is not only a big step out of the crisis for our airlines, it is also excellent news for the transatlantic partnership,” said the top manager.

Travel companies hope for a ticket boom

For Germany’s largest airline, all routes across the Atlantic are of fundamental importance. The reason: Up until the beginning of the pandemic, the North American routes were the most profitable in the Lufthansa range. The USA is a very popular travel destination not only for business travelers, but also for tourists. CEO Spohr had actually hoped that this important market would be accessible again as early as September. The rampant delta variant had thwarted these plans.

The Tui travel company is expected to see growing demand as soon as the details of the entry requirements are in place. The past few months have shown that people would book at very short notice as soon as a country reopened its borders, said a spokesman. The US has traditionally been one of the company’s top ten destinations.

Tui therefore wants to increase its offer in the next few weeks. From Germany, the company also uses external planes such as Lufthansa. From Great Britain, on the other hand, there are direct flights with the Dreamliner (Boeing 787). Here, too, the offer will be gradually increased, said the spokesman. In addition, the relaxed entry requirements would ensure security when planning the next summer vacation. Tui therefore assumes that many customers will opt for the USA in January, when the summer trip is traditionally planned.

Business travel operators such as American Express Global Business Travel (GBT) are also hoping for increased ticket sales. “Our customers have a lot of catching up to do when it comes to transatlantic business travel. We expect bookings to continue to grow, ”said Andrew Crawley, GBT’s chief commercial officer. The manager described the opening of the US borders after a 550-day lockdown as a “step forward for global economic recovery”.

Currently, only US citizens, holders of a green card or certain exceptional groups in existential professions from the EU or Great Britain are allowed to travel to the USA. The regulation was decided under the former US President Donald Trump. His successor Joe Biden left the decision untouched for a long time, but now he is loosening the guidelines. Accordingly, travelers to the USA must be fully vaccinated and require a negative corona test, which must not be more than three days old.

Exact guidelines on how this follow-up should take place would be announced at a later date, said White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki in Washington on Monday. It remains to be seen how to proceed with children who cannot currently be vaccinated but would like to travel with them. And it is also unclear whether a PCR or an antigen test is required for the mandatory proof of a negative corona test.

However, the question of which vaccines are accepted by the USA for proof of complete vaccination is particularly sensitive. Because so far only three vaccines have been approved there: the preparations from Pfizer / Biontech, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson. Astra-Zeneca’s vaccine has not yet received an emergency approval in the USA, but has been vaccinated frequently in the UK and Germany.

Medium-sized companies suffer particularly

While Dax companies worth billions such as Siemens or Daimler, which employ tens of thousands of people in the USA, were able to cope with the effects of the Travel Ban comparatively well, many medium-sized companies struggled with serious problems. DIHK foreign trade chief Volker Treier estimates that the German companies in the USA have suffered damage in the double-digit billions as a result.

Haribo can expand in the USA

The Travel Ban was particularly tricky for the confectionery manufacturer Haribo, as the medium-sized company is currently building a new plant in the US state of Wisconsin. “We are very pleased that we can visit one of our most important growth markets, the USA,” emphasized a Haribo spokesman. Regular video conferences were a good way to stay in contact with colleagues on site. “However, this cannot completely replace face-to-face exchange on site,” he says.

Construction has been planned since 2017, there have been some delays in the past. But now the company is on schedule, they say. That was also due to a pragmatic approach to the Travel Ban. “Specialists and managers who are important for the new construction of the plant have received special permits for entry from the US government in recent months,” explains the Haribo spokesman. Some also have a visa and work on site. The company expects the construction to be completed by the end of next year and the ramp-up phase to begin in 2023. As a result, Haribo creates around 400 jobs in the USA.

Thomas Fischer, chairman of the supervisory board of the filter specialist Mann + Hummel, is also pleased with the end of the travel ban, which was an obstacle for the company. “It was only thanks to the great commitment and immense efforts of everyone involved that our US CEO Kurk Wilks and the management were able to travel during the pandemic,” says Fischer. From his point of view, the Travel Ban should have been canceled much earlier. “Europe lifted entry restrictions for US citizens back in June – comparable rules should apply to travelers in both directions.”

Most companies want to travel less in the future than they did before the pandemic, as many issues can also be clarified via video conference. But numerous processes and ideas “can only be discussed and initiated live on site,” says Hansgrohe boss Christophe Gourlan.

His company manufactures fittings for kitchens and bathrooms near Atlanta, Georgia. “In order to implement our projects together with our US colleagues, we of course also need personal exchange and more trips by the expert teams to Atlanta,” said Gourlan.

VDMA foreign trade expert Ackermann does not see the fact that travelers to the United States will also need a negative corona test in the future as a burden. On the contrary. Perhaps they encourage one or the other to “finally get vaccinated”.

China under pressure

With the easing of entry into the USA, the pressure on China is now increasing. The People’s Republic continues to have a “rigid entry policy”, criticizes Ackermann. But the trade expert does not expect a quick solution in the Far East. Ackermann believes that China should not move until 2023 at the earliest. While this is not a real problem for large corporations, many medium-sized companies are “really pinched”, Ackermann told the Handelsblatt.

In China in particular, business life is based on personal relationships. However, this exchange is hardly possible due to the restrictions. Many smaller companies therefore fear that they will lose even more sales in the Far East in the coming years.

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