SHANGHAI — Shanghai ordered people arriving in the city from other countries to undergo nucleic acid testing (NAT) to screen for coronavirus from March 16, local authorities said.

The new measure will expand a program that previously only applied to those coming from 24 heavily-hit countries, no matter their nationality, according to the municipal government's press conference on March 22.

From March 16, inbound flight passengers from non-key countries to Shanghai will also need to undergo NAT, temperature checks, epidemiological investigation and verification of their health declaration forms.

Last week, the Shanghai municipal government ordered people arriving in the city from 24 heavily-hit countries where they lived or traveled within the past 14 days to undergo 14-day quarantine at home or designated places.

Shanghai reported 14 new confirmed imported COVID-19 cases on March 21, bringing the total number of imported cases in the city to 56.