The Polish Council yesterday adopted a recommendation on travel to and from European Union countries, according to which the freedom of movement of travelers should depend on having a vaccination certificate, not an epidemic situation in the country from which the person is leaving, announced RADA. The new recommendation is expected to apply until February 1.
It responds to the significant increase in vaccination rates and the rapid introduction of the EU digital COVID certificate, and replaces the existing recommendation. It will enter into force on February 1, 2022, the same day as the delegated act […] assuming a 270-day validity period for the vaccination certificate, according to a Rada announcement.
Under the new recommendation, measures on COVID-19 should be applied on a person’s basis, not on a regional level, except in areas where the spread of the virus is exceptionally high.
This means that the deciding factor should be vaccination confirmation, convalescent status, or a negative test result are also reported. In the Council’s view, “a person-centered approach will significantly simplify the existing rules and provide travelers with additional clarity and predictability” of the regulation.
Travelers holding a valid EU COVID digital certificate should not be subject to additional restrictions on free movement.
A valid EU COVID digital certificate includes:
– Vaccination certificate for a vaccine approved at European level if at least 14 days and not more than 270 days have elapsed since the last dose in the primary series, or if the person has received a booster dose. Member States may also accept vaccination certificates for vaccines approved by national authorities or the WHO.
– A negative PCR test obtained no later than 72 hours before the journey or a negative rapid antigen test obtained no later than 24 hours before the journey.
– Recoverable Certificate indicating that no more than 180 days have passed from the date of the first positive test result.
People who do not have the EU’s digital COVID certificate may be required to undergo a test prior to travel or no later than 24 hours after arriving in the country concerned. Certain exceptions to these recommendations may be made for persons with essential functions or needs, employees crossing the border to work and persons under the age of 12.
According to the Council, the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) should continue to publish a map of Member States’ regions indicating the potential risk of infection according to the signaling system (green, orange, red, dark red). The map should be based on the 14-day new infection rate, vaccination rate and number of tests.
On the basis of this map, Member States should apply measures for travel to and from dark red areas with high infection rates. In particular, they should discourage any irrelevant travel and require those arriving from those areas who do not have a vaccination or recovery certificate to undergo a pre-departure test and quarantine upon arrival.
Certain exceptions to those measures should apply to travelers with a critical function or needs, cross-border commuters and persons under the age of 12.
According to the new recommendation, the safety brake is strengthened in response to new variants of concern or interest. When a Member State introduces restrictions in response to a new option, the Council, in close cooperation with the Commission and with the support of the ECDC, should review the situation.
The decision to introduce restrictions on free movement to protect public health is left to the discretion of the Member States, but coordination is needed, stressed the Council. A Council Recommendation is not a legally binding instrument.
Source: RADA and ISBnews
