China plans to reopen borders on January 8 by abandoning quarantine and downgrading other safeguards against Covid-19. This is the country’s last step in shedding three years of zero-Covid and pivoting to living with the virus, The South China Morning Post reports. After almost three years of closed borders, this will reopen the country to those with work and study visas, or seeking to visit family, BBC reports.  But it comes as China struggles with the virus's ferocious spread in the wake of restrictions being lifted. Reports say hospitals are overwhelmed and elderly people are dying. The true toll—daily case counts and deaths—is currently unknown because officials have stopped releasing Covid data. From January 8, travelers to China will only need to present a negative PCR test result from the previous 48 hours at customs to enter the country, the State Council announced on Monday night, according to the report. The State Council said China would officially scrap centralized quarantine and Covid-19 tests on arrival from that date. Travelers will also no longer have to apply to Chinese embassies for a health code before departure.

Nepal-China border virtually remains closed after the coronavirus outbreak. This has seriously affected two-way trade and transport. The Nepali side is requesting China to open the border but the northern neighbor is citing its strict zero-Covid policy. Nepal’s Ambassador to China Bishnu Pukar Shrestha said Nepal is requesting Beijing officials to remove the border hassles as soon as possible.

After three years of closure, Rasuwagadhi-Kurung, a key crossing point for the bilateral trade between Nepal and China, was reopened from Tuesday. Nepal has started importing Nepali products to China. China will scrap restrictions on international passenger flights, increase the number of flights in stages, and optimize the distribution of routes, according to the statement, according to Xinhua news agency. Airlines will continue to carry out disinfection on board, and passengers are required to wear masks when flying, it said. China will further optimize arrangements for foreigners traveling to China for work, business, study, family visits, and reunions, and provide visa facilitations accordingly. Measures will be taken to ensure that freight at various ports will return to pre-epidemic levels as soon as possible, and outbound tourism for Chinese citizens will be resumed in an orderly manner, said the statement, according to Xinhua.  With the opening of the border, Nepal-China engagement that was restricted for nearly three years is likely to increase. Rasuwa/Kerung port between Nepal and the People’s Republic of China has officially resumed its operation for two-way trade from Tuesday, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Department of Commerce of the Tibet Autonomous Region of the People’s Republic of China organized an official ceremony in Kerung today to observe the opening of the port. Similarly, Hilsa/Purang port has also been opened for one-way trade from 26 December 2022. The resumption of the ports is expected to augment bilateral trade between Nepal and China, the Ministry said.