European Union Vaccination Travel Certificates Now Accepted In Greece and Germany
Travel news reveals that Greece and Germany together with five other European Union nations introduced a vaccination travel certificate system for travelers today.
The system is well ahead of the July 1 program rollout expected to take place in each of the EU’s 27 nations.
Greece And Germany Begin European Union Vaccination Travel Certificates
According to the European Commission the other five countries joining Greece and Germany are Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Croatia and Poland.
Greece is heavily dependent on tourism and has led the way in urging a commonly-recognized certificate that uses a QR code with advanced security features.
Who is allowed to get a certificate? The certificates are being issued to fully vaccinated people, those who have contracted the virus and developed antibodies, and those who have had a PCR test within the last 72 hours.
Greece and Germany are Among Seven Nations to Kick off European Union Vaccination Travel Certificates
The new certificates come in both digital and paper formats. There is no cost to obtain one and the language on them is the national language plus English. The certs are valid in all of the EU’s countries.
EU Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides said, “EU citizens are looking forward to travelling again, and they want to do so safely. Having an EU certificate is a crucial step on the way.”
Greece’s digital governance minister Kyriakos Pierrakakis added that a streamlined travel process will be the result as EU nations adopt the new verification standard.
Greece and Germany Lead the Way For European Union Coronavirus Vaccination Travel Certificates
Pierrakakis told Skai television, “What will happen is that countries will stop issuing certificates using their own convention and adopt the common convention. That will simplify things considerably, because you can imagine the number of bilateral agreements that would otherwise need to be worked out.”
Kyriakides said that in the next few weeks all EU nations need to, “fully finalize their national systems to issue, store and verify certificates, so the system is functioning in time for the holiday season.”
Individual countries will be allowed to additional extra vaccines to their entry list, including those that have not been officially approved for use in the EU.
The EU Commission has stated that people who are vaccinated should no longer have to be tested or quarantined, regardless of where they are travelling to or from, beginning two weeks after receiving their second shot. However, not all member countries are on board with that declaration.
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