EU TO LIMIT VACCINE VALIDITY IN COVID PASS TO 9 MONTHS

Tue 21 December 2021:

According to Reuters, the European Commission adopted rules on Tuesday that will make the European Union COVID-19 certificate valid for travel nine months after the primary vaccination schedule is completed.

The new rules will take effect on February 1 and will apply to all 27 EU member states, according to the official. A qualified majority of EU governments or a simple majority of European Parliament members can block the rule, but officials say there is enough support for it.

Today, we adopt a binding acceptance period of 9 months for vaccination certificates for intra-EU travel.

A harmonised validity period for #EUCOVIDCertificate is a necessity for safe free movement and EU level coordination.

— European Commission 🇪🇺 (@EU_Commission) December 21, 2021

The rule replaces a non-binding recommendation issued by the European Commission in November.

EU states will be required to allow fully vaccinated travelers with a valid pass access to their territory once the rule goes into effect. They could, however, impose additional requirements, such as negative tests or quarantines, as an exception justified by a worsening situation, as long as they are proportionate.

Several EU countries, including Italy, Portugal, and Greece, are requiring fully vaccinated travelers from other EU countries to also show a negative COVID-19 test upon arrival, a measure that some see as jeopardizing the EU pass’s credibility.

Only international travel is subject to the new rules.

Governments will be able to customize the COVID-19 pass’s duration for access to events or indoor activities in their own territories.

EU justice commissioner Didier Reynders said the European Union needed to “adjust to changing circumstances and new knowledge”.

He warned that “unilateral measures in the member states would bring us back to the fragmentation and uncertainties” that, before the EU Covid certificate was introduced in July, saw testing and quarantine barriers spring up to travel in the EU.

“It’s now up to the member states to ensure boosters will be rolled out swiftly to protect our health and ensure safe travelling,” he said.

Because there is currently insufficient information about the duration of booster protection, the validity of the COVID-19 pass will be extended indefinitely after a booster shot, according to an EU official.

In the EU, a primary COVID-19 vaccination schedule consists of two shots of vaccines made by Pfizer-BioNTech, AstraZeneca, and Moderna, or a single shot of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

According to the Commission, 807 million COVID vaccine certificates have been issued in the EU so far.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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