Laurence Crumbie
THE Spanish Ministry of Health has just announced that it will now also accept negative TMA tests from travellers wishing to enter Spain and that children under six are exempt.
Typically under €100, a TMA (Transcription Mediated-Amplification) test is cheaper than a PCR test, which can cost over €200, and produces results twice as quickly – in around two hours.
Like a PCR test, a TMA test is carried out using a nasal swab and detects the presence of genetic material from COVID-19, making it highly reliable.
The Health Ministry has also ruled that children under six years of age are exempt if they are arriving via air and that test results can be presented in French or German, in addition to in English or Spanish, which were the only accepted languages until now.
The changes were made after Spaniards in Manchester complained that it was costing them up to £250 just to get a PCR test and that the results of tests carried out by the UK National Health System, in instances of suspected contact with a ‘positive’, did not include passport details or a Spanish ID number.
All travellers to Spain are still required to fill out a ‘Sanitary Control Form.’
