(File photo: CFP)

COVID-19 nucleic acid tests are required for all college students returning to Beijing for the new semester, and schools will pay for the tests, said Song Laixin, deputy Party secretary of Beijing University of Chemical Technology during a live streaming program on Sunday.

Li Yi, a spokesperson for the Beijing Municipal Education Committee, explained that this policy was made for the safety of the schools and to protect the capital.

“Different universities will have different reopening plans, their students will be returning from all across the country, and it will be totally up to the school administrators to decide how they are going to organize the tests, so it can be really flexible,” Li added.

(Compiled by Ma Xiaoxi)