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TOURISM

Italy imposes quarantine for all travellers arriving from EU

Italy will require travellers arriving from all other EU countries to quarantine for five days on arrival, the health minister said on Tuesday, in a move expected to discourage Easter trips.

Published: 30 March 2021 11:48 CEST
Updated: 30 March 2021 16:48 CEST
Italy imposes quarantine for all travellers arriving from EU
Temperature checks on arrivals at Rome's Fiumicino Airport. Photo: Andreas Solaro/AFP

Health Minister Roberto Speranza has signed a new ordinance requiring anyone entering Italy from another member of the EU or Schengen Zone to get tested for coronavirus before departure and observe quarantine regardless of the results, he announced on Twitter.

They must then get tested again after five days in isolation.

The new rules are in force from March 31st to April 6th.

They will apply to foreign visitors and returning residents alike, with the only exceptions for reasons of “proven necessity and urgency”, a ministry official told AFP.

EXPLAINED: What are Italy’s rules for travel over Easter?

Previously most travellers within the EU simply had to test negative up to 48 hours before arriving in Italy, while quarantine only applied to people arriving from countries outside the bloc. 

The quarantine period is nonetheless shorter for EU travellers at five days. People arriving from non-member states have to spend 14 days in isolation.

The move seems designed to discourage travel over the upcoming Easter break, when all of Italy will go into a three-day lockdown.

Representatives of the Italian tourism industry had criticised rules that would allow people in Italy to take a holiday overseas but not within the country, due to strict limits on non-essential travel between towns or regions.

Tourism within the EU remains possible under Italy’s international travel restrictions, but is discouraged by the Italian Foreign Ministry which urges people to avoid any overseas trips unless absolutely necessary.

A passenger gets tested on arrival at Rome’s Fiumicino airport. Photo by ANDREAS SOLARO / AFP

Some of Italy’s neighbours already impose quarantine on travellers arriving from other parts of Europe, including Austria, Switzerland and Sweden, while others including Germany require air passengers to show proof of a negative coronavirus test.

Italy has separate restrictions on travel from Austria, with arriving passengers subject to tests before and after arrival as well as a 14-day quarantine, followed by a third test.

Travellers who are subject to quarantine should report the address where they plan to self-isolate to the local heath authorities on arrival, then make their way to it by private transport only. They must then remain inside for the duration of the quarantine period, avoiding contact with anyone else who shares the accommodation.

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EES PASSPORT CHECKS

EES border checks could undergo ‘soft launch’, UK says as app concerns mount

The UK government is preparing for a "soft launch" of the new EU border system – the Entry/Exit (EES) system - in October but authorities are still waiting for European Commission to confirm the start date, amid concerns over the delay of a new app.

Published: 4 May 2024 09:30 CEST
EES border checks could undergo 'soft launch', UK says as app concerns mount

The UK government is preparing for a soft launch of the new EU border system – the entry/exit (EES) system – on the assumption that it will go live on October 6th, ministers told a hearing at the House of Commons European scrutiny committee this week.

But the European Commission is expected to confirm the exact launch date of the new biometric checks for non-EU travellers entering the Schengen area at some point this summer, they added.

“We are very much working on a basis whereby this policy will go live on the 6th of October. It is important that we plan for that eventuality. We are expecting to hear definitively from the European Union that ‘go live’ arrangement in the summer,” Tom Pursglove, UK Minister for Legal Migration and the Border told the committee.

The parliamentary committee is conducting an inquiry on the disruptions the system will cause in the UK.

Pursglove also said that “precautionary measures” have been agreed by the EU, that will be put in place in certain circumstances after the start of EES, for example if delays at the borders exceeded a certain length of time.

Guy Opperman, Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Transport, said that in practice this meant a “soft launch” of EES for 6 months before “a full go live”. During that soft launch EU member states and the UK could deploy flexibility measures should problems occur.

“The likelihood is, after multiple delays, that the 6th of October will proceed” and the implementation looks “very different” compared to previous scenarios considering the flexibility allowed in the first 6 months, he argued.

No details were given on what these “flexible” measures would involve however. 

READ ALSO: Your questions answered about Europe’s EES passport checks

He conceded that “a lot of work” still needs to be done but the UK “should be as ready as everybody” and “better be at front of the queue”.

App not ready

During the meeting, it also emerged that a much-anticipated app that would allow remote pre-registration of non-EU citizens subject to the checks will not be available for testing until August “at best”, prompting concerns about the EES launch date.

“You don’t need to be a sceptic about future projects to think that the provision of the app in August for going live in October is optimistic,” Opperman said.

Ministers confirmed that the app will not be ready in time for October and the committee previously stated it might be delayed until summer 2025.

The app will facilitate pre-registration, but photo and fingerprints will still have to be taken at the border in front of a guard, the committee heard.

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

Several MPs asked whether the entry into operation of the EES should be delayed again if technology is not ready. But Under-Secretary Opperman said the app “is not going to be a panacea to fix all problems”.

The main aim of EES is to increase security and to ensure that non-EU nationals visiting the Schengen area for a short-term do not stay more than 90 days in any 180-day period.

The entry into operation of the system has already been delayed several times and there have been calls from certain travel companies and national authorities to delay it again.

Under the new scheme, non-EU/EFTA travellers who do not need a visa will have to register their biometric data (finger prints and facial images) in a database that will also record each time they enter and exit the Schengen area.

Instead of having passports manually stamped, travellers will have to scan them at self-service kiosks before crossing the border. However, fingerprints and a photo will have to be registered in front of a guard at the first crossing and there are concerns the extra time needed will generate long queues, especially in Dover, Folkestone and St. Pancras station in London, where there are juxtaposed French and UK border checks.

Progress in preparations

Minister Pursglove also updated MPs on ongoing preparations. He said some testing of the system will take place within days, 5 kiosks have been installed at St. Pancras station and are available for testing. “You are beginning to see the physical infrastructure appear,” he said.

Kiosks and extra lanes are also being created at the port Dover and it was agreed with the EU passengers travelling by coach will be checked away from the Eastern dock, where controls usually take place, allowing to gain space. The vehicles will then sealed and drive on the ferries.

MPs also discussed the infrastructure cost linked to the introduction of the EES. Opperman said all EU countries will have to make “huge investments” in their ports. In the UK, he argued, this will help “address problems that have existed for some time”. Because of this “massive investment”, in a few years time “Dover will be totally transformed,” he said.

This article is published in cooperation with Europe Street News.

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