March 12, 2020 — Just hours after the World Health Organization declared that the outbreak of COVID-19/coronavirus is officially a global pandemic, U.S. President Donald Trump declared in a televised speech that all travel from Europe to the U.S. would be suspended for 30 days, starting at midnight on 13 March.
While Trump initially stated in his speech that the travel prohibitions would also apply to trade and cargo, the White House later clarified that the ban only applies to foreign nationals trying to travel to the U.S., not goods, cargo, or U.S. citizens trying to return. The ban currently does not apply to the United Kingdom.