Updated Rules for Travel within European Union

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The Irish Travel Agents Association (ITAA) is reminding all travellers of changes coming into force from tomorrow, Tuesday 1st February. All travellers will be required to have had a second vaccination within 9 months, proof of recovery within the past 6 months or a booster vaccination in order to travel within the European Union.

Original EU Digital Covid certifications issued since last July 2021 have a 9-month expiry from the date of the second vaccination or the date of the single dose Janssen.  Secondly, all travellers will be required to have an updated EU Digital Covid certification showing their booster vaccination or an EU Digital Covid certification showing proof of recovery if they had Covid. Vaccination cards are not accepted, you need to have the official EU Digital Covid certification with the QR code as the QR code is scanned for validity.

It is expected that this new rule, set in place by the European Union Commission will have no major impact on international travel. Those planning to travel are advised to obtain updated EU certifications or recovery certifications and to continue to research all government guidelines before travelling.

Pat Dawson, CEO of the ITAA stated, “It has been well flagged by the European Union that the original EU Digital Covid certs have a nine month validity. With the level of booster vaccinations in this country, everyone who has had a booster can get their updated EU digital cert. Anybody who has had COVID-19 and is not eligible for the booster can go to www.gov.ie to obtain a recovery certification, so this should not cause any issues whatsoever.”

Paul Hackett President of the ITAA confirmed, “This EU wide decision and the EU commission has been very good with handling the digital COVID-19 certifications and ensuring consistency across all member states. This means that when traveling anywhere in the EU, the rules are pretty much the same.  However, the ITAA do advise that you receive up to date guidelines from your travel agent or check out dfa.ie for updated traveling information before travelling.”