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COVID-19 HEALTH PASS

Spain’s Andalusia to require Covid health pass at most outdoor bar terraces 

People in the southern Spanish region who don’t have a Covid-19 health pass to enter hospitality establishments will not be able to rely on sitting outdoors in most bar and restaurant terraces, Andalusia’s Health Minister has warned. 

Published: 20 December 2021 11:06 CET
Customers sat outdoors in bar and restaurant terraces in Andalusia will be asked to show their Covid health pass in most places.
Customers sat outdoors in bar and restaurant terraces in Andalusia will be asked to show their Covid health pass in most places. Photo: JAIME REINA / AFP

Andalusia’s Minister of Health and Families Jesús Aguirre on Saturday confirmed Friday’s announcement that the Covid health pass will finally be required for the hospitality sector in Andalusia after several failed attempts to get it approved in the courts over the course of 2021. 

From Monday December 20th, people will need either a Covid health pass or proof of a negative Covid-19 test to be able to enter the interior of bars, cafés, restaurants and nightclubs in the region that’s home to cities such as Seville, Málaga, Granada and Almería.

Even though the latest regional BOJA bulletin doesn’t make a mention of it, Aguirre told journalists in Córdoba on Saturday that “the majority of establishments will ask for it (the Digital Covid Certificate) for outdoor seating”, stressing the commitment of hospitality businesses to adopting the measure.

Though unofficial, this makes Andalusia the first region in Spain to require a Covid health pass for people sitting outdoors in bar and restaurant terraces, a seating option which is usually available across the country if the weather allows for it.

That means that unvaccinated people in the southern region may not be able to sit outdoors – an alternative which is available in the 11 other Spanish regions which currently require a Covid-19 health pass – and in effect be barred from the vast majority of hospitality establishments in Andalusia.

The region’s government – La Junta – has made a QR reader available to the region’s roughly 34,800 bars and 11,700 restaurants which will allow them to scan customers’ Covid health passes and check their validity.

MAP: Which regions in Spain now require a Covid health pass for daily affairs?

Around 5.3 million people have downloaded their Covid health pass in the region of 8.4 million. 

Aguirre called on those who haven’t downloaded their Digital Covid Certificate yet to do so “to give them peace of mind when they want to go out for a meal or go out partying”.

READ ALSO: How to get a Covid-19 health pass for daily affairs in Andalusia

The Covid health pass or passport measure for the hospitality sector will be in place until January 15th 2022. The health document was already required to enter hospitals and care homes in Andalusia. 

People who haven’t been vaccinated against Covid-19 can present a negative antigen test taken within the last 48 hours or a negative PCR test taken within the last 72 hours in order to gain access to a bar or restaurant, indoors or outdoors. 

Those who have recovered from Covid in the past 6 months can also prove so via a PCR test taken at least 11 days after getting infected with the virus.

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TRAVEL NEWS

Spain scraps Covid-19 pass rule for EU travellers

EU/Schengen citizens and residents travelling to Spain no longer need to present the EU's Digital Covid Certificate or any other proof of vaccination, testing or recovery to enter the country. 

Published: 3 June 2022 09:55 CEST
Spain scraps Covid-19 pass rule for EU travellers

For the first time in more than two years, people from the EU or Schengen Area who are travelling to Spain by air or sea will not have to prove they are fully vaccinated, tested negative for Covid-19 or recovered recently from the illness.

The announcement was published on Thursday June 2nd 2022 in the country’s BOE state bulletin, meaning Spain’s Covid-19 travel rules have changed with immediate effect.

“Due to the high rates of vaccination coverage in Spain, above the European Union average, and the favourable situation of the health system, it is considered appropriate to eliminate travel restrictions for people from countries belonging to the European Union as well as associated Schengen countries”, states the BOE.

In a nutshell, EU/Schengen citizens and residents can now travel to Spain restriction-free. 

The only Covid-19 travel rule that remains for them is having to wear a face mask on flights or inside crowded ferries heading to Spain, as Health Minister Carolina Darias recently stressed. 

REMINDER: What are Spain’s exact mask rules for travel?

Although it’s not explicitly stated in the BOE, it is understood that EU travellers will not have to complete Spain’s health control form either, as the previous rule stated that those with an EU Digital Covid Certificate or equivalent need not fill out this extra documentation.

“People who arrive in Spain by air or sea from countries that do not belong to the European Union or are not considered Schengen associated countries may be subject to a health check at the first point of entry that will include, at least, the taking of temperature, documentation control and a visual check on their physical condition,” the Spanish government clarified about the fact that the Covid pass rule remains in place for non-EU/Schengen travellers.

Spanish health authorities already eased entry rules for third-country tourists such as Britons and Americans on May 21st, lifting the ban on unvaccinated non-EU/Schengen travellers by allowing them to enter Spain with a negative Covid-19 test.

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