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How you can use Norway’s Covid-19 certificate at the border? 

Norway's Covid health certificate is available and will allow certain travellers to skip entry quarantine entirely when presented at the border. So how will this process work, and what documentation do you need to show?

How you can use Norway's Covid-19 certificate at the border? 
Oslo Airport. Photo Hiritomo T Flickr

Norway’s full domestic Covid pass has officially launched and will allow travellers fully vaccinated in Norway (not abroad for the time being) to skip entry quarantine when returning to Norway.

They will be exempt from entering quarantine, provided they test negative on arrival in Norway. 

The same will also apply to people who have tested positive for Covid in Norway in the previous six months. 

Travellers will have to document their exemption at the border using the domestic version of Norway’s Covid-19 certificate. 

How to access the certificate

The health certificate is only available from Norway’s digital health portal helsenorge

Helsenorge is Norway’s digital health portal where all info on testing and vaccination in Norway is uploaded.

The certificate can be accessed via the helsenorge app, which is available on Android or iPhone, or via helsenorge.no.

To log in and view the certificate, you will need a level four security clearance electronic ID. BankID, Buypass and Commfides are the IDs you’ll be able to use to log in and view the vaccine pass. 

If you haven’t got an electronic ID, then, unfortunately, you won’t be able to access the certificate. 

If you’d like to read more on where you can get an electronic ID and which one we’d recommend, then you can check out this handy guide we’ve put together. 

READ MORE: Everything foreigners in Norway need to know about electronic IDs 

How does the certificate work? 

The certificate comes in the form of a simple QR code that.

The QR code gets its info from the health portal helsenorge, where results of tests and information on vaccinations are uploaded. 

When scanned at the border the QR will glow green if you have been vaccinated, recently returned a negative coronavirus test, or have had COVID-19 in the previous six months.

If you do not meet these criteria, then it will glow red, as well as test status. 

There are two pages on the coronavirus certificate: The control page and the extended control page. 

The control page is used for domestic purposes. The extended control page is used for crossing the border into Norway. 

Extended control page 

To access the extended control page, you will need to press the Utvidet button to access it. 

When you arrive at the border, this will be the page you show to the border police. 

The police will scan the QR codes that are on the extended control page. The inspector will receive information on whether the QR code is valid. 

The QR code being valid means the information is correct, not whether you will be released from entry quarantine or not. 

The inspector will see information on what vaccines you have received and when, as well as test status. 

Furthermore, while the code may glow green when scanned if you have been vaccinated at least three weeks before the barcode being scanned, recently returned a negative coronavirus test, or have had COVID-19 in the previous six months, this does not mean you will be exempt from quarantine.

This just means you are considered protected against Covid-19. 

To be exempt from quarantine, you will need to have tested positive for coronavirus within the previous six months and be able to document it via the certificate or have been fully vaccinated for at least a week. 

If you meet these criteria, you are also exempt from presenting a negative Covid-19 test taken within 24 hours of your departure at the border. 

Below you can see what the extended control page looks like. 

The extended control page. Source: helsenorge.no

What happens next? 

Regardless of whether they are not required to quarantine, all travellers will need to be tested when arriving in Norway. If there are problems getting a test due to crowds, then those who are fully vaccinated can be allowed to leave the airport but must take a test within the following two days.

Depending on your eligibility, these will be the quarantine rules: 

  • If you are fully vaccinated, you will be released from entry quarantine. 
  • If you have had Covid and recovered, you will also be released from quarantine. 
  • If you have had only one jab, you will be able to quarantine at home and then take a test to leave the isolation period after three days. The same applies to children under 18.
  • If you are not vaccinated or do not have access to the Norwegian Covid certificate, then you will need to quarantine either at home or in a hotel, depending on where you arrive from. 

READ MORE: LATEST: Who has to enter quarantine hotels when travelling to Norway

Arrivals who haven’t been vaccinated in Norway 

Norway is currently only allowing travellers vaccinated in Norway to skip entry quarantine. 

Currently, travellers who have been vaccinated elsewhere will have to follow the current quarantine rules, which means they either enter a quarantine hotel or spend the period at home, depending on where they arrive from. 

Norway will consider making fully vaccinated travellers using the EU’s vaccine passport exempt from quarantine also in July.

READ MORE: Norway rolls out new rules on Covid-19 entry quarantine rules

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Explore Austria: Mauer, a charming wine-hiking spot on Vienna’s outskirts

Catch the very tail-end of the wine season and autumn foliage in one of the lesser-explored corners of the Austrian capital: Mauer.

Explore Austria: Mauer, a charming wine-hiking spot on Vienna’s outskirts
Beautiful views and cosy taverns await you on the edge of Vienna. Photo: Catherine Edwards

Wine-hiking is an autumn must-do in Austria. There’s the official Wine Hiking Day (Weinwandertag) that usually draws in big crowds, but it’s also possible to follow the routes through beautiful scenery and wine taverns on your own.

Mauer in the southwest of Vienna is one of the routes that is mostly frequented by locals.


The footpath takes you through scenic vineyards. Photo: Catherine Edwards

You can reach this part of the 23rd district using Vienna’s public transport, and you have a few options. From the Hietzing station on the U4 line, you can take the tramline 60 or bus 56A. The former will take you either to Mauer’s central square or you can get off earlier at Franz-Asenbauer-Gasse to start the hike. If it’s too early in the day for wine just yet, you could start your day at the small and charming Designo cafe (Geßlgasse 6).

Otherwise, the residential area itself doesn’t have much to see, but keep an eye out as you wander between the taverns later — there are some beautiful buildings.

To start the hike, head west along Franz-Asenbauer Gasse, which will take you up into the vineyards, growing some red wine and Vienna’s specialty Gemischter Satz or ‘field blend’, which as the name suggests is a mixture of different types of grapes.

Photo: Catherine Edwards

The paved road takes a left turn, but the hiking route follows a smaller path further upwards. Here you’ll have magnificent views over the whole of Vienna.

If you stick to the official hiking route (see a map from Weinwandern here) you can keep the whole route under 5 kilometres. But more adventurous types don’t need to feel limited.

You can also follow the Stadtwanderweg 6 route (see a map here) either in full, which will add on a hefty 13 kilometres, or just in part, and venture further into the Mauerwald. If you do this, one spot to aim for is the Schießstätte, a former hunting lodge offering hearty Austrian meals.

EXPLORE AUSTRIA

In any case, you should definitely take a small detour to see the Wotrubakirche, an example of brutalist architecture from the mid-1970s built on a site that was used as a barracks during the Second World War.

Not far from the church is the Pappelteich, a small pond that is not only an important habitat for local flora and fauna, but a popular picnic spot for hikers. Its only water supply is from the rain, and due to climate change the pond has almost dried out in recent years, prompting the city to take action to boost its water supply by adding a permanent pipe.


The church is made up of over 150 concrete blocks. Photo: Catherine Edwards

What you really come to Mauer for, though, are the Heuriger or Viennese wine taverns. 

The most well-known is Edlmoser (Maurer Lange Gasse 123) which has previously been named as the best in Vienna. Note that it’s not open all year so check the website, but in 2021 it should be open between November 5th and 21st, and is also serving the goose that is a popular feature on Viennese menus this time of year.

Tip for translating Heuriger opening times: look for the word ausg’steckt, which is used by those taverns which aren’t open year round. They will also often show that they’re open by attaching a bunch of green twigs to the sign or front door.


Buschenschank Grausenburger. Photo: Catherine Edwards

Also worth visiting are cosy Buschenschank Grausenburger (Maurer Lange Gasse 101a), Heuriger Wiltschko (Wittgensteinstrasse 143 — located near the start of the hiking route, this is a good place to begin your tour) and Heuriger Fuchs-Steinklammer (Jesuitensteig 28).

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