FAQ for Restrictions on Work-Related Travel to China

At the current time, the public health authorities recommend a voluntary period of up to 2 weeks’ isolation at home after leaving. Ideally, you should also get in touch with the health authority in your municipal district. Out of hours, you can contact them via the central directory in Altona at +49 40 42811 1775.

The Federal Ministry of Health has identified 3 criteria for identifying a suspected case. If you have symptoms of a respiratory tract infection (e.g., cough) AND have spent time in a high-risk area in China (currently, the high-risk area is restricted to Hubei Province) in the last 14 days OR have had contact with someone with the coronavirus (2019-nCoV) in the past 14 days, THEN you should contact a doctor. On weekends, the medical emergency service can be reached at 116 117.

Not at the present time. However, this may change at short notice. We ask you to keep an eye on this website for up-to-date information.

If you are intending to travel, please register on the crisis prevention list of the German embassy in Beijing at elefand.diplo.de. In an emergency, please contact the German embassy’s on-call service at +86 10 8532 9202.

No. As Taiwan is not part of the Chinese mainland, the Federal Foreign Office has not currently issued any travel warnings. However, this may change at short notice. We ask you to keep an eye on this website for up-to-date information.

Staff members who are unable to return due to the travel restriction may work remotely (home office) from China.

As this is a situation of force majeure, supervisors are responsible for making appropriate arrangements to protect staff returning from countries covered by the work-related travel restriction and others—for example, working from home.

Check if it can be canceled. Contact the Travel Management team (reisemanagement"AT"verw.uni-hamburg.de) regarding a possible refund.

Generally, no. However, in special cases, the responsibility for this decision lies with your supervisor.

To prevent infection, particularly in regions which have found cases of the new coronavirus, you should pay particular attention to washing your hands, covering your mouth and nose when you cough or sneeze (preferably using your elbow), and keeping a distance from people who are sick. In light of the flu season, however, you should observe these basic hygiene measures everywhere and at all times. (Source: Robert Koch Institute)

You will find a good summary of questions and answers (in German) on the Robert Koch Institute website: www.rki.de/SharedDocs/FAQ/NCOV2019/FAQ_Liste.html. For further information in English, visit the World Health Organization page: www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019.