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HEALTH

Italy to introduce new Covid ‘pass’ for travel in high-risk zones

Italy's prime minister has announced that a travel "pass" will soon allow people to enter or leave Italy's higher-risk coronavirus zones.

Published: 20 April 2021 17:33 CEST
Italy to introduce new Covid 'pass' for travel in high-risk zones
Negative Covid test certifcates are already required to board dsome train services in Italy, and may soon be needed for more domestic travel. Photo: Piero CRUCIATTI/AFP

Prime Minister Mario Draghi confirmed on Friday that some of the country’s coronavirus restrictions will be gradually relaxed from April 26th. But, while the government has given an outline of the reopening plan, many questions and uncertainties remain.

READ ALSO: Schools, restaurants, gyms, travel: Here’s Italy’s new timetable for reopening

The big news on Friday was that lower-risk ‘yellow’ zones will be reintroduced from next week – and in these areas, various restrictions will be lifted including the current closures of bars and restaurants across the country.

The nationwide ban on travel between regions will also no longer apply in yellow zones, Draghi said, adding that people could also be allowed to enter and leave areas which remain classed as higher-risk red and orange zones using a travel “pass”.

However, he didn’t give any details of what form this pass would take or what the requirements would be.

According to a new draft decree reported in Italian media this week, the document will certify that the holder had either been fully vaccinated, had tested negative for coronavirus within the past 48 hours, or had already contracted and recovered from Covid-19.

IN NUMBERS: Is it too soon for Italy to relax its coronavirus restrictions?

The pass is expected to be in the form of a paper document at first, before later being made available via an app or QR code.

The certificate will be valid for six months for those who are vaccinated or recovered, and it can be issued by the vaccination centre, or in the case of recovery, by a hospital, family doctor or pediatrician.

Certificates obtained by testing negative, meanwhile, are to be valid for 48 hours and can be issued by testing centres or pharmacies. 

What will the pass be needed for?

The document would need to be shown before boarding at airports or train stations, and if stopped by police at a checkpoint if travelling by car.

The government is also reportedly considering making the pass a requirement to attend certain cultural and sporting events, such as concerts and football matches, when they are allowed to reopen in yellow zones.

It is not yet clear when the new pass would be made available.

Further details on this and other aspects of Italy’s reopening plan are expected by Thursday, as ministers are currently finalising the country’s next emergency decree, due to come into force by Monday.

Italy has already launched some ‘Covid-free’ train services which only allow passengers to board if they can show a negative test certificate, and there are a limited number of ‘Covid-tested’ flights operating between Italy and the US:

Photo: Piero CRUCIATTI/AFP

Is this the same thing as a vaccine passport?

Italy’s new pass is also expected to be valid for travel within Europe.

It would work similarly to the European Digital Green Certificates scheme, due to launch in June in hopes of making summer travel safer within the bloc.

The proposed EU travel certificates, expected to be available via an app, will have information on whether a traveller has been vaccinated or not, if they have received a negative test result, or if they have recovered from Covid-19.

Italy’s government has not yet confirmed whether it will take part in the European scheme, and the country’s health minister has previously suggested that Italy wants to implement a pass which would also open up travel from non-EU countries.

However it is not known if the new pass could later be used for travel to or from non-EU countries.

READ ALSO:

The idea of ‘vaccine passports’ has proved controversial in Italy, with many arguing that they would be discriminatory and unfair and also amount to coercion to take what is supposed to be a voluntary vaccine.

There are also concerns about the idea of vaccinated tourists being allowed into the country while many of Italy’s own residents are still unable to access a vaccine, amid delays and bureaucratic problems.

The Italian government has not yet confirmed any plans to relax the current restrictions on international travel to Italy, however.

The tourism minister last week suggested June 2nd as a possible date for restarting non-essential travel, but this is not confirmed.

Testing and quarantine are currently required for almost all arrivals, and these requirements are expected to stay in place for many travellers for some time yet as the speed of Italy’s vaccine rollout lags behind the European average.

For more information on the restrictions please see the Italian Health Ministry’s website (in English).

Member comments

  1. If I have been vaccinated in the USA and am here on a work visa can I obtain a covid pass for travel to visit my relatives in a different zone?

  2. How do residents that have received vaccine from the US or other country get a COVID pass to travel? Will the US CDC vaccination card or printout from your doctor work?

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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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