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Spain lifts Covid testing requirement for travellers from Germany, Italy, Austria and more EU countries

Holidaymakers from most regions in Germany and Italy as well as a number of other countries can now visit Spain without having to show a negative PCR/antigen test or proof of vaccination or recovery, Spanish authorities have announced. 

Published: 22 June 2021 10:12 CEST
Spain lifts Covid testing requirement for travellers from Germany, Italy, Austria and more EU countries
Photo: Jaime Reina/AFP

Spain’s Health Ministry has updated its entry requirements for EU/EEA countries to exclude most German states, Italian regions and other countries from its risk countries/areas list, a decision which effectively means that more European travellers can visit Spain without having to prove their Covid status or pay for diagnostic tests. 

Spanish authorities have reached this decision based on the improving infection rate in these areas and their advanced vaccination campaigns, meaning that the people travelling from countries/areas no longer on the risk list do not have to show proof of a negative PCR test or antigen test, proof of vaccination or proof of recovery. 

The lifting of the testing requirement came into effect on Monday June 21st and applies to travellers from all German states except Baden-Württemberg and Saarland, who will still have to prove their Covid-19 status. 

The same applies to people in Italy travelling to Spain from the regions of Abruzzo, Emilia-Romagna, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Lazio, Liguria, Lombardia, Marche, Molise, Piemonte, Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano/Bozen, Provincia Autonoma di Trento, Puglia, Sardinia, Toscana, Umbria and Veneto, who do not need to provide negative Covid tests.

Holidaymakers heading to Spain from several counties in Norway – Innlandet, Møre og Romsdal, Nordland, Rogaland, Trøndelag, Vestland and Viken – are also now excluded from the testing requirement.

The omission from the risk list of Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary ,Finland, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria and Malta effectively means that travellers from these countries do not have to show proof of Covid status when travelling to Spain.

Greek travellers from Anatoliki Makedonia Thraki, Ipeiros, Peloponnisos and Voreio Aigaio can also come to Spain test-free, as can Croatians heading to Spain from Panonska Hrvatska.

If you want to travel to Spain from a territory that’s still on Spain’s risk list, here are the entry requirements you have to meet. 

READ ALSO: What you should know before getting an antigen test for travel to and from Spain

Spain’s EU/EEA risk country/area list has remained practically unchanged in 2021, only including small islands and isolated territories in the bloc as exceptions to the testing rule. 

The list is updated on a weekly basis, meaning that this latest version is valid until June 27th. 

There are also travellers from third countries from outside the EU/EEA who can visit Spain without having to show a vaccine/test/recovery certificate, such as the case of British tourists, who have been able to visit Spain without a PCR or antigen test since May. 

The full list of non-EU/EEA countries whose travellers can visit Spain for non-essential reasons and don’t need to prove their Covid status remains unchanged: Australia, Israel, New Zealand, Rwanda, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, Hong Kong, Macao, China, the United Kingdom and Japan.

However, all international travellers flying to Spain, whether they’re from the EU or outside or are on the risk list or not, must make sure they fill in a health control form on the Spain Travel Health website or app before travelling to Spain. Travellers should also remember to check the entry requirements of their countries for travel from Spain. 

If you’re planning on staying at tourist accommodation in Spain’s Canary Islands, you should check their requirements here.

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Member comments

  1. What are the Covid-19 test requirements after entering Germany while traveling? And, if we leave Germany and travel into Austria and/or Switzerland, what are the Covid-19 test requirements for re-entering Germany? We are US tourists and not vaccinated.

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TRAVEL NEWS

Reader question: What will EES mean for foreigners living in Europe?

The EU's new Entry & Exit System (EES) of enhanced passport controls is due to come into force later this year, but among many questions that remain is the situation for non-EU nationals who live in the EU or Schengen zone.

Published: 27 April 2024 07:59 CEST
Reader question: What will EES mean for foreigners living in Europe?

Currently scheduled to start in autumn 2024 (unless it’s delayed again, which is not unlikely) the EU’s new Entry & Exit System is basically an enhanced passport check at external EU borders, including a facial scan and fingerprinting.

You can find a full explanation of the new system HERE.

Travellers crossing an external EU or Schengen border for the first time will be required to complete EES ‘pre-registration’ formalities including that facial scan and fingerprinting.

There are, however, several groups exempt from EES and one of them is non-EU nationals who have a residency permit or long-stay visa for an EU country.

So if you’re a foreigner living in the EU or Schengen zone, here’s what you need to know.

Exempt

One of the stated aims of EES is to tighten up enforcement of over-staying – IE, people who stay longer than 90 days in every 180 without a visa, or those who overstay the limits of their visa.

Obviously these limits do not apply to non-EU nationals who are resident in the EU or Schengen zone, which is why this group is exempt from EES checks. They will instead be required to show their passport and residency permit/visa when crossing a border, just as they do now.

In its explanations of how EES will work, the European Commission is clear – exempt groups include non-EU residents of the Bloc.

A Commission spokesman told The Local: “Non-EU citizens residing in the EU are not in the scope of the EES and will not be subject to pre-enrollment of data in the EES via self-service systems. The use of automation remains under the responsibility of the Member States and its availability in border crossing points is not mandatory.

“When crossing the borders, holders of EU residence permits should be able to present to the border authorities their valid travel documents and residence permits.”

How this will work

How this will work on the ground, however, is a lot less clear.

Most ports/airports/terminals have two passport queues – EU and non-EU. It remains unclear whether the non-EU queue will have a separate section for those who are exempt from EES.

It does seem clear that exempt groups will not be able to use the automated passport scanners – since those cannot scan additional documents like residency permits – but should instead use manned passport booths. However it is not clear whether these will be available at all airports/ports/terminals or how non-EU residents of the EU will be directed to those services.

There’s also the issue that individual border guards are not always clear on the processes and rules for non-EU residents of the EU – even under the current system it’s relatively commonly for EU residents to have their passports incorrectly stamped or be given incorrect information about passport stamping by border guards.

Brits in particular will remember the immediate post-Brexit period when the processes as described by the EU and national authorities frequently did not match what was happening on the ground.

The Local will continue to try and get answers on these questions. 

READ ALSO What will EES mean for dual nationals

What if I live in the EU but I don’t have a visa/residency permit?

For most non-EU citizens, having either a visa or a residency permit is obligatory in order to be legally resident.

However, there is one exception: UK citizens who were legally resident in the EU prior to the end of the Brexit transition period and who live in one of the “declaratory” countries where getting a post-Brexit residency card was optional, rather than compulsory. Declaratory countries include Germany and Italy.

Although it is legal for people in this situation to live in those countries without a residency permit, authorities already advise people to get one in order to avoid confusion/hassle/delays at the border. Although EES does not change any rules relating to residency or travel, it seems likely that it will be more hassle to travel without a residency card than it is now.

Our advice? Things are going to be chaotic enough, getting a residency permit seems likely to save you a considerable amount of hassle.

Delays 

Although residents of the EU do not need to complete EES formalities, they will be affected if the new system causes long queues or delays at the border.

Several countries have expressed worries about this, with the UK-France border a particular cause for concern.

READ ALSO Travellers could face ’14 hours queues’ at UK-France border

Where does it apply?

EES is about external EU/Schengen borders, so does not apply if you are travelling within the Schengen zone – eg taking the train from France to Germany or flying from Spain to Sweden.

Ireland and Cyprus, despite being in the EU, are not in the Schengen zone so will not be using EES, they will continue to stamp passports manually.

Norway, Switzerland and Iceland – countries that are in the Schengen zone but not in the EU – will be using EES.

The full list of countries using EES is: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.

Therefore a journey between any of the countries listed above will not be covered by EES.

However a journey in or out of any of those countries from a country not listed above will be covered by EES.

You can find our full Q&A on EES HERE.

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