A person who is symptom free and has not been in close contact with a suspected SARS patient may freely be welcomed without any other measures.
However, he or she should remain vigilant, and if symptoms develop within 10 days of arrival, should contact the medical service of the host country.
A person who has been in close contact or thinks he or she has been in close contact with a person suspected of SARS over the last 10 days, should not leave his/her country.
If, however, the person has already left his/her country, he or she should contact the medical service of the hosting country to be placed under active surveillance for 10 days.
If a person develops symptoms within 10 days of arrival in the host country (including sudden fever above 38 degrees C, dry cough, shortness of breath, and/or difficulty in breathing), the person should not leave his/her room and should call the medical service of the host country to ensure that proper isolation can be arranged.
All countries should have in place arrangements for surveillance, contact tracing and isolation in case of the importation of a SARS case. The best defence is not exclusion but good management of the situation in the unlikely event that someone attending a meeting were to become sick with SARS.
Wearing of masks by people who are well and are travelling from an area with recent local transmission of SARS is not recommended by WHO.