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Italy’s latest emergency decree extends most rules until October 7th

Italy's latest decree extends most of the current rules aimed at preventing the spread of coronavirus, though there are some changes. Here's what you need to know.

Published: 7 September 2020 09:14 CEST
Updated: 7 September 2020 20:36 CEST
Italy's latest emergency decree extends most rules until October 7th
Masks remain compulsory in public places in Italy, including in some outdoor areas between 6pm-6am. Photo: AFP

The latest set of rules, signed by PM Giuseppe Conte on Monday evening, is the latest in a series of government decrees – formally called a DPCM (Decreto del presidente del consiglio, or 'prime minister's decree') – issued under Italy's coronavirus state of emergency that introduced the sweeping restrictions of the past six months.

The new decree will be valid for 30 days, until October 7th, when ministers will again decide if rules should be extended or revisited.

Rather than being a new set of regulations and provisions, the latest text is mainly an extension of existing rules put in place by prevous decrees.

The good news is that no new restrictions have been introduced – and some have been relaxed. Here's what you need to know.

Masks remain compulsory

As expected, the new decree keeps Italy's existing rules on face masks in place: everyone must wear them in enclosed public spaces such as shops, restaurants or public transport. They must also be worn in outdoor areas between 6pm-6am, as the rule introduced on August 15th has also been extended under the new decree.

Masks must be worn “in the spaces pertaining to places and premises open to the public as well as in public spaces (squares, open spaces, streets, promenades) where due to the physical characteristics it is easier for gatherings to form, including those of a spontaneous and occasional nature.”

The only exceptions are children under six years old, or people with a disability that makes it impossible. 

Those rules will apply until at least September 30th, when the government will decide whether to extend them again.

Most travel restrictions stay in place 

Italy's complex travel rules are otherwise mostly unchanged in the new decree.

Those returning to Italy from trips to Spain, Malta, Greece and Croatia will still face mandatory testing on arrival and the quarantine obligation for those arriving from Romania and Bulgaria stays in place.

The decree also keeps in place a ban on entry from countries on Italy's no-travel list. There are 16 countries currently included: Armenia, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Brazil, Bosnia Herzegovina, Chile, Kuwait, North Macedonia, Moldova, Oman, Panama, Peru, Dominican Republic, Serbia, Montenegro and Kosovo.

READ ALSO: Who is allowed to travel to Italy from outside the EU?

Unrestricted travel from within the EU remains permitted.

Travel from elsewhere, including from the US, remains possible for essential reasons only and arrivals will still face a 14-day quarantine on arrival.

Travel ban exception for international couples

The decree is set to include an exception to allow the reunification of international couples separated due to the travel rules: partners living abroad can now enter Italy to reach “the person with whom they have a stable emotional relationship, even if not cohabiting.”, the decree text states

Those travelling to italy for this reason must undergo a mandatory 14-day quarantine period upon arrival in Italy, and will need to complete a self-certification form, La Repubblica reports. This self-certification formwill be sent to local halth authorities.

It is not yet clear what evidence they must provide to prove their relationship is “stable”.

READ ALSO: 'We're not tourists': The separated US-Italian couples demanding change to Covid travel rules

Photo: AFP

Nightclubs stay closed

Dance venues will stay closed throughout September under the extended rules.

Italy shut down all discos and nightclubs, including outdoor venues, on August 15th as they were being frequently linked to new outbreaks in the country.

Public transport capacity increased
 
The new decree allows public transport to run at 80 percent of its maximum capacity from Monday.
 
School buses will be able to travel at full capacity as long as children do not stay on board more than a quarter of an hour, the text states, ahead of the planned return to school from September 14th.
 
 
Still no sports fans at stadiums

Stadiums will not be able to admit the public in September, and football matches will continue to be played behind closed doors.

From September 1st, fans hae been allowed to watch sports in person again, but only for “minor” events. In other words amateur and local competitions are OK, but Italy's Serie A football matches remain off-limits.

There will also be a cap on the number of spectators allowed to attend: 1,000 for outdoor events and 200 indoors. The same cap applies to audiences at concerts and cultural events.

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TRAVEL NEWS

Reader question: How do the EU’s new EES passport checks affect the 90-day rule?

As European travellers prepare for the introduction of enhanced passport checks known as the Entry & Exit System (EES), many readers have asked us what this means for the '90-day rule' for non-EU citizens.

Published: 1 May 2024 07:18 CEST
Reader question: How do the EU's new EES passport checks affect the 90-day rule?

From the start date to the situation for dual nationals and non-EU residents living in the EU, it’s fair to say that readers of The Local have a lot of questions about the EU’s new biometric passport check system known as EES.

You can find our full Q&A on how the new system will work HERE, or leave us your questions HERE.

And one of the most commonly-asked questions was what the new system changes with regards to the 90-day rule – the rule that allows citizens of certain non-EU countries (including the UK, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand) to spend up to 90 days in every 180 in the EU without needing a visa.

And the short answer is – nothing. The key thing to remember about EES is that it doesn’t actually change any rules on immigration, visas etc.

Therefore the 90-day rule continues as it is – but what EES does change is the enforcement of the rule.

90 days 

The 90-day rule applies to citizens of a select group of non-EU countries;

Albania, Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, El Salvador, Georgia, Grenada, Guatemala, Honduras, Hong Kong, Israel, Japan, Kiribati, Kosovo, Macau, Malaysia, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, New Zealand, Nicaragua, North Macedonia, Palau, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Serbia, Seychelles, Singapore, Solomon Islands, South Korea, Taiwan, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tuvalu, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Vatican City and Venezuela.

Citizens of these countries can spend up to 90 days in every 180 within the EU or Schengen zone without needing a visa or residency permit.

People who are citizens of neither the EU/Schengen zone nor the above listed countries need a visa even for short trips into the EU – eg an Indian or Chinese tourist coming for a two-week holiday would require a visa. 

In total, beneficiaries of the 90-day rule can spend up to six months in the EU, but not all in one go. They must limit their visits so that in any 180-day (six month) period they have spent less than 90 days (three months) in the Bloc.

READ ALSO How does the 90-day rule work?

The 90 days are calculated according to a rolling calendar so that at any point in the year you must be able to count backwards to the last 180 days, and show that you have spent less than 90 of them in the EU/Schengen zone.

You can find full details on how to count your days HERE.

If you wish to spend more than 90 days at a time you will have to leave the EU and apply for a visa for a longer stay. Applications must be done from your home country, or via the consulate of your home country if you are living abroad.

Under EES 90-day rule beneficiaries will still be able to travel visa free (although ETIAS will introduce extra changes, more on that below).

EES does not change either the rule or how the days are calculated, but what it does change is the enforcement.

Enforcement

One of the stated aims of the new system is to tighten up enforcement of ‘over-stayers’ – that is people who have either overstayed the time allowed on their visa or over-stayed their visa-free 90 day period.

At present border officials keep track of your time within the Bloc via manually stamping passports with the date of each entry and exit to the Bloc. These stamps can then be examined and the days counted up to ensure that you have not over-stayed.

The system works up to a point – stamps are frequently not checked, sometimes border guards incorrectly stamp a passport or forget to stamp it as you leave the EU, and the stamps themselves are not always easy to read.

What EES does is computerise this, so that each time your passport is scanned as you enter or leave the EU/Schengen zone, the number of days you have spent in the Bloc is automatically tallied – and over-stayers will be flagged.

For people who stick to the limits the system should – if it works correctly – actually be better, as it will replace the sometimes haphazard manual stamping system.

But it will make it virtually impossible to over-stay your 90-day limit without being detected.

The penalties for overstaying remain as they are now – a fine, a warning or a ban on re-entering the EU for a specified period. The penalties are at the discretion of each EU member state and will vary depending on your personal circumstances (eg how long you over-stayed for and whether you were working or claiming benefits during that time).

ETIAS 

It’s worth mentioning ETIAS at this point, even though it is a completely separate system to EES, because it will have a bigger impact on travel for many people.

ETIAS is a different EU rule change, due to be introduced some time after EES has gone live (probably in 2025, but the timetable for ETIAS is still somewhat unclear).

It will have a big impact on beneficiaries of the 90-day rule, effectively ending the days of paperwork-free travel for them.

Under ETIAS, beneficiaries of the 90-rule will need to apply online for a visa waiver before they travel. Technically this is a visa waiver rather than a visa, but it still spells the end of an era when 90-day beneficiaries can travel without doing any kind of immigration paperwork.

If you have travelled to the US in recent years you will find the ETIAS system very similar to the ESTA visa waiver – you apply online in advance, fill in a form and answer some questions and are sent your visa waiver within a couple of days.

ETIAS will cost €7 (with an exemption for under 18s and over 70s) and will last for three years.

Find full details HERE. 

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