International SOS Rolls Out COVID Trip Planner to Support Safe Return to Travel

Kuala Lumpur, 24 February 2022 – Following the recent announcement by the National Recovery Council (NRC) that proposed Malaysia’s borders will be fully opened by March to support the country’s economic recovery, and as more countries regionally and internationally starting to open their borders, International SOS has rolled out a new risk management tool, the COVID Trip Planner. Supporting a safe and sustainable return to travel and enabling organisations to navigate the ever-changing landscape of COVID-19 restrictions, the planner, which provides personalised information and advice on how to plan travel, is now accessible to its clients via the International SOS ManagerView and Assistance App.

Information provided in the planner is constantly updated as countries and regions change their COVID-19 related rules and requirements. This includes travel rules by destination, country visa requirements, testing requirements and quarantine mandates. Using the COVID Trip Planner, travellers will better understand how they can plan travel based on the passport they hold and their COVID-19 vaccination status. They will also have direct access to any necessary forms to complete prior to departure.

Jing Tan, Regional General Manager and Director, South East Asia, International SOS, shared, “Navigating the ever-changing landscape of COVID-19 restrictions require travellers and businesses to be updated on the latest international and domestic border requirements. With more employees returning to travel (for both business and leisure), organisations need to constantly monitor and update their travel programmes to support their safe return to travel.”

He continued, “The pandemic has added more complexity to travel, and it can be difficult for businesses to keep track of all the changing rules globally. Currently it takes 9 times longer to plan for travel during the pandemic with significantly more compliance requirements and documentation. Our COVID Trip planner is extremely useful as it takes a lot of the burden and stress out of travel planning. As borders continue to open up, Malaysian and South East Asian organisations do need to be ready to take advantage of the new opportunities to do business internationally, but at the same time they have to be conscious of ensuring their employees’ health and safety, and that they get the right support while travelling for meetings and events.”

Dr Chan Yanjun, Medical Director, Singapore & Malaysia, International SOS, added, “Omicron sparked another wave of travel bans and many countries had to take the decision to reverse their border easing in fear of the highly transmissible variant. We expect travel regulations to continuously evolve, and the impact of COVID-19 may even transform the way we travel for many years to come. Each trip may require a risk management process based on the destination, need for travel, as well as additional COVID-19 restrictions.”

International SOS has been supporting thousands of organisations to navigate the complexity and changing regulations since the start of the pandemic. It continues to enhance its technology to support the needs of travellers. The launch of the COVID Trip Planner promotes a safe and sustainable return to travel for many organisations as they navigate the complexity of complying with the changing regulations and ensuring safe business travel decisions are made. Users of the COVID Trip Planner will also have access to International SOS Assistance Centre 24/7 Support, enabling them to connect with medical or security professionals whenever needed.

To find out more about the solution, visit https://my.internationalsos.com/LP=8426.