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QUARANTINE

Italy extends quarantine requirement for travellers from UK

The Italian government announced on Thursday evening that the requirement for all travellers from the UK to quarantine for five days after arrival would be extended into next month.

Published: 29 July 2021 21:55 CEST
Italy extends quarantine requirement for travellers from UK
(Photo by ANDREAS SOLARO / AFP)

Italy initially reinstated quarantine and double-testing requirements for all arrivals from the UK (including anyone who has transited there within the past 14 days) on June 21st amid concern about the Delta variant-driven surge in coronavirus cases in Britain.

The quarantine rule was set to end on Friday July 30th but on Thursday evening the country’s Minister of Health Roberto Speranza announced on Facebook that compulsory quarantine would remain in place for all arrivals from the UK including those who are fully vaccinated.

READ ALSO: How should travellers from the UK quarantine in Italy?

The rule will be extended until at least August 30th, according to the ordinance.

“I have just signed an order extending the restrictive measures regarding entry into Italy from India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Brazil,” said Speranza.
 
“The 10-day quarantine for non-European countries is confirmed, except for those on the EU-recommended list for which quarantine is reduced to 5 days.
 
“Mini quarantine is confirmed also from Britain.”
 
 
 
He did however announce that Italy would recognise the vaccination certificates or so-called health passes for travellers from the UK for use in Italy. Italy will begin asking members of the public to show their green passes to gain entry into certain places from August 6th.
 
But no more details were added about whether health passes and QR codes stored on the UK’s NHS app would be recognised.
 
“Vaccination and health certificates can be used for green pass purposes in Italian territory,” he said, adding “For the European countries and Schengen area, as well as Canada, Japan, and the United States, the green pass requirements entry regime is extended.”

As Italy is not currently making any exemptions for those who are vaccinated, and with steep fines for anyone found not following the rules, this “mini-quarantine” has proven a big problem for many of The Local’s UK-based readers – particularly those who had been planning to visit Italy this summer for shorter periods to attend weddings and other events.

Even those who were planning longer trips have had to rethink plans, not least because low demand resulted in airlines slashing the number of flights available on UK-Italy routes.

This week the UK announced that from Monday August 2nd it would allow travellers vaccinated in European countries (apart from France) including Italy to travel to the UK without the need for the mandatory 10-day quarantine

Member comments

  1. Bit confused here. So a UK arrival needs to quarantine for 5 days ‘as-is. Italy will accept the data from the NHS app as a ‘green card’. But will not recognise the QR code? (Probably because the tech infrastructure doesn’t read it.) Is that correct?

  2. So if you are a green-pass holding Italian resident (but EU or UK citizen) who visits the UK, do you still have to do the 5 days’ quarantine and test on return here to Italy (home)?
    All rather confusing? Any advice very welcome!

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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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