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What will change when Italy eases the rules on travel from UK?

Italy's health minister announced that vaccinated travellers from the UK will no longer have to quarantine on arrival from Tuesday. But what exactly are the rules for vaccinated and non vaccinated travellers?

Published: 29 August 2021 11:08 CEST
What will change when Italy eases the rules on travel from UK?
Photo: Piero Cruciatti / AFP

Italy initially re-imposed a 5-day quarantine for travellers arriving from Britain back in June, when the Delta variant was spreading rapidly in the United Kingdom. 

On Saturday, Health Minister Roberto Speranza announced that he had signed a new ordinance ending the ‘mini-quarantine’ for visitors from the UK, starting on the August 31st.

There was some confusion about when the rule change would come into place with the Italian embassy in the UK initially tweeting that the relaxed rule of vaccinated travellers would start on September 1st, before making the correction to August 31st.

Vaccinated travellers from the UK

Fully-vaccinated travellers arriving from the UK will therefore no longer have to undergo the 5-day quarantine upon arrival to Italy. However, they will still have to take a Covid-19 test and show proof of vaccination.

Italy recognises proof of vaccination issued by the UK’s NHS and allows it to be used in place of the ‘green pass’ within to access museums, concerts and other venues within Italy.

Travellers who have been in the UK in the previous 14 days must also present a negative molecular (PCR) or antigen test taken no more than 48 hours before travel.

Children under the age of 6 do not need to take a test.

READ ALSO: Your questions about Italy’s quarantine rules for UK arrivals answered

Before travel, you must also complete an online digital form that will generate a QR code, which you may have to present to travel provider and Border Police if requested.

Some things were still unclear however such as whether vaccinated travellers who arrived before the change in rules would still have to spend five days in quarantine or whether it would end on August 31st.

It was also unclear what the policy would be towards those who had recovered from Covid and received one jab of their vaccine.

Note that the Italian travel rules are based on which country you travel from, and not which passport you hold.

Non-vaccinated travellers from the UK

For non-vaccinated travellers, the rules stay the same as before. Those coming to Italy from the UK will have to show a negative test and then quarantine for 5 days upon arrival. They must take another test at the end of the quarantine period.

Vaccinated travellers from the EU

Italy is allowing entry from all EU and Schengen zone countries using the Europe-wide ‘green pass’ scheme. 

What about travellers from outside the EU?

The health minister said that existing restrictions for visitors from other countries will remain in place.

READ ALSO: What to expect if you’re flying from the US to Italy

Stay up to date with Italy’s travel rules by following The Local’s travel section and checking the Italian Health Ministry’s website (in English).

Member comments

  1. Hi, I’m planning to visit Milan in October and I’m wondering how do I present a negative test when I go?

  2. If the health minister said that existing restrictions for visitors from other countries will remain in place, does that mean they are not changing anything for the US for September?

  3. Why does the Local focus on the UK and we hardly hear anything about US and changes in our restrictions?

  4. We are travelling to Sicily from UK (over the moon that we no longer have to self-isolate) and have seen suggestions that some regions might require a PCR test rather than rapid antigen test, but can’t find any information on this (I’ve looked on the Sicilian regional health website but can’t see anything useful there). Any advice would be extremely welcome.
    Thanks
    Julia

  5. 2 points to consider:
    Returning to the UK will still involve proof of having booked and paid for a 2 day PCR test. This is often far more expensive than the actual flights.
    The UK QR code cannot at present be read by Italian lettori

  6. At the moment, because there are no changes to report for US arrivals? In fact, only a few days ago there was was an article about how there were no changes to report!

    1. Hi Elinor
      As far as I understand it, Italy accepts a certified rapid antigen test for arrivals, but the advice I have seen is that some regions might require a PCR. I am specifically trying to find out about Sicily, but the regional website is a bit impenetrable and I can’t find an answer.

      1. Thank you! If we could just do the antigen test it is much cheaper!! I guess it will become clear – hopefully!!

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For members

BREXIT

Are Italy’s British residents still getting their passports stamped?

UK residents of Italy protected under the Withdrawal Agreement reported having their passports wrongly stamped at border checks following Brexit. Has that issue now been cleared up, or are some Brits still experiencing issues?

Published: 22 May 2024 15:53 CEST
Updated: 23 May 2024 09:08 CEST
Are Italy's British residents still getting their passports stamped?

In the months after the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement was finalised, many UK citizens in Italy with permanent Italian residency reported having their passports wrongly stamped on leaving and entering Italy.

Italy is one of a handful of “declaratory” countries in the EU where getting a post-Brexit residency card was optional, rather than compulsory, though UK authorities advised obtaining the card as “evidence of your rights”.

The lack of clarity caused widespread confusion, with many Italian officials wrongly insisting that the carta di soggiorno elettronica was the only valid proof of pre-Brexit Italian residency.

Meanwhile, many travellers initially reported that border officials in Italy were not clear on the purpose of the card and had stamped their passports regardless – leading to concerns about erroneous stamps causing problems on future trips.

The issue appears to have been largely resolved for British citizens who finally gave in and applied for the document, with most cardholders saying they no longer have issues with their passports being stamped at the country’s major airports.

READ ALSO: What’s the deal with passport stamping in Italy?

However, some UK nationals resident in Italy say they’re still wrongly having their passports stamped at smaller airports in Italy, especially when travelling alongside large groups of British holidaymakers.

And others report routinely having their passport stamped when entering the Schengen zone via a different EU member state to that of Italy – for example, when travelling by car from the UK via France.

UK national David Prince commented in response to a recent article on passport stamping that a border official had stamped his passport on arriving in Calais, despite his presenting an Italian residency permit.

“When I asked why he simply said “Article 50,” Prince said, “which I knew was rubbish but I couldn’t be bothered to argue.”

According to European Commission rules in place since 2022, Schengen border agents have been told that they shouldn’t stamp the passports of anyone with a valid EU residence permit – but there’s no EU law stopping them from doing so.

Even if your passport is stamped, it doesn’t carry any official weight.

“The Commission recommends – notably as regards beneficiaries of the Withdrawal Agreement – that Member State border guards refrain from stamping,” the rules say.

“In any case, should stamping nevertheless take place, such stamp cannot affect the length of the authorised long-term stay.”

READ ALSO: Can I use my Italian carta d’identità for travel?

If you arrive at any Schengen border, it’s advisable to hand over your passport already opened to the photo page, with your residency card on top, and say that you’re resident in Italy.

If you’re at an Italian border checkpoint, you might want to say ‘sono residente in Italia’ – I’m an Italian resident – and be prepared to answer questions about your reasons for being in Italy.

One additional source of confusion for some residents has been the difference between a carta d’identità and a carta di soggiorno.

The carta di soggiorno elettronica is the post-Brexit residency card which proves your status as a legal resident in Italy, wheres a carta d’identità is simply your Italian ID card.

The ID card is valid for ten years, but that doesn’t automatically give you the right to stay in Italy for all that time. Some non-EU citizens on certain visas might have a ten-year ID card, but a one-year Italian residency permit.

For that reason, your Italian ID card isn’t considered proof of your right to be in the country; as a British citizen resident in Italy and covered under the Withdrawal Agreement, you’ll need to show your carta di soggiorno elettronica to a border agent to stand the best chance of avoiding having your passport stamped.

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