The plan, which has been submitted to the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee for consideration, would have included Dong Nai as well, but the province has not agreed with it.

In Long An Province, workers coming from HCMC on personal cars and motorbikes would need to have received at least one Covid-19 vaccine shot at least 14 days prior or have recovered from Covid-19 within the last six months. They would also need to have negative coronavirus results from tests done within the previous seven days.

From HCMC to Binh Duong, workers traveling in cars would need to satisfy the aforementioned requirements, plus have travel papers with destinations and itineraries. If they travel on motorbikes, they can only move between HCMC’s Thu Duc City and Binh Duong’s Thuan An and Di An towns.

Those traveling from HCMC to Tay Ninh would need to be vaccinated with at least one shot at least 21 days prior or recovered from Covid-19 within the past six months. They would also need to test negative for the coronavirus within the last three days.

Those who want to travel from Long An, Binh Duong and Tay Ninh to HCMC on personal vehicles must either be vaccinated with at least one shot at least 14 days prior or have recovered from Covid-19 within the past six months. They should have also tested negative for the virus within the previous seven days.

While traveling across localities, people would need to medically declare themselves through apps or show papers to prove they have either recovered from Covid-19 within the past six months or been vaccinated.

For traveling between HCMC, Long An, Binh Duong, Tay Ninh and Dong Nai using companies' cars not considered personal vehicles, passengers should be workers and experts traveling on official business. Their workplace should have sent their travel plans to local transport departments for processing necessary papers.

In such plans, drivers, attendants and passengers must also satisfy vaccination, Covid-19 recovery and negative coronavirus test requirements, but specific chronological details of post-vaccination and coronavirus tests would depend on localities. No vehicle can carry more than 50 percent of its maximum passenger capacity.

As Vietnam prepares its transition from a zero-Covid strategy to living with the coronavirus, the transport ministry has issued road transportation guidelines to be observed starting October. But several localities are still shying away from allowing buses to resume interprovincial travel over coronavirus outbreak fears.