The European Union (EU) decided to lift travel restrictions on their visitors from 16 countries, including Jordan and five other Arab countries, according to a statement by the EU published by the Schengen Visa News website.

Following a review under the recommendation for the gradual lifting of temporary restrictions on non-essential travel to the EU, the Council updated the list of countries.

The statement indicated that the countries included in the new decision are Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Chile, Jordan, Kuwait, New Zealand, Qatar, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, Uruguay and China.

The statement indicated that the list is not binding, and member states are free to remove the entry ban at the external borders for travelers from countries not mentioned in the list.

The lifting of restrictions will come into force as of Friday, Oct. 8.

The lifting of temporary restrictions on non-essential travel to the EU will be updated with a new list every two weeks, according to the Council of the European Union.