Denmark has in the last month been slowly opening up for tourism, first removing the need to have a “worthy purpose” for travel from citizens of the European Union and Schengen countries. 

Right now, there are several categories of people in countries outside the EU or Schengen countries who can come to Denmark for tourism. They include: 

People travelling from countries outside the EU or Schengen countries classed as “yellow” 

In its latest amendments to its travel guidelines, which came into force on June 5th, Denmark classed eight countries outside the EU or Schengen region as “yellow”,  Australia, Israel, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, Japan, and Rwanda. 

All of these are on the European Union’s list of epidemiologically safe countries. China is also on the list, but the EU has decided that opening to China is “subject to confirmation of reciprocity”, meaning China must first lift restrictions on travel from EU countries. 

If your plane to Denmark departs from a “yellow” country, you do not need to show a negative Covid-19 test before boarding the plane.

If you are a resident of a “yellow” country, you do not need to have a “worthy purpose” to enter Denmark. (Note however that this depends on country of residency rather than country of departure, so if, for instance, you are resident in Malaysia (orange), you still cannot come to Denmark as a tourist, even if you fly from Singapore (yellow). 

People who are fully vaccinated and are resident in OECD countries which are not classed as “red”.

In its June 5th amendment, Denmark opened the way for residents in countries that are members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), who are fully vaccinated with a vaccine approved by the European Medicines Agency to travel to Denmark without a “worthy purpose”.

At least 14 days needs to have passed since their final dose of vaccine. 

Denmark seems unique in building the OECD grouping into its travel guidelines. Although the group is often described as the “rich countries club”,  the 11 members who are not part of the EU or Schengen zone include some middle income countries such as Columbia and Costa Rica, as well as more obvious “rich world” nations such as the US, UK, and Canada. 

In the amendment, the foreign ministry said that vaccinated OECD residents, as well as vaccinated residents of “yellow countries” are “equated with those vaccinated from EU and Schengen countries”. 

As well as not needing a “worthy purpose”, this means that, so long as your country of residence is not classed as “red”, there is no need to show a test before boarding the aircraft, to go into self-isolation on arrival, or to take a test on arrival in Denmark before entering the country. (At Copenhagen Airport, there is a test centre between the arrival gate and border control). 

None of the OECD countries is currently in Denmark’s list of “red” countries with the highest levels of infection. 

Children, pregnant women and breastfeeding women travelling with a fully vaccinated national from an OECD country, or from a “yellow” country, can also travel without a worthy purpose. They still need, however, to get tested before flying and on arrival in Denmark. 

Below is a useful table from the Danish police’s guide for travellers to Denmark.