BRUSSELS (AP) – The European Union executive body on Wednesday proposed issuing certificates that would allow EU residents to travel freely across the 27-nation bloc until the summer, provided they have been vaccinated, tested negative for COVID-19 or recovered from the disease.
With summer approaching and countries dependent on tourism eagerly awaiting the return of visitors amid the coronavirus pandemic, the European Commission plans to create certificates aimed at facilitating travel between EU member countries. The plan is set to be discussed during an EU leaders summit next week,
“We all want the tourist season to begin. We cannot afford to miss another season, ”European Commission Vice-President Vera Jourova told Czech public radio. “Tourism, as well as culture and other sectors that depend on tourism, suffer terribly. We are talking about tens of millions of jobs. “
The issue of vaccine certificates has been under discussion for weeks in the EU, where it has proven to be divisive. The travel industry and southern European countries with economies dependent on tourism, such as Greece and Spain, have been pushing for the rapid introduction of a program that would help eliminate quarantines and testing requirements for tourists.
But several other EU members, including France, have argued that it would be premature and discriminatory to introduce such passes, as the vast majority of EU citizens have not had access to vaccines so far.
To ensure the participation of all member countries, the commission has proposed the free delivery of “Green Digital Certificates” to EU residents who can prove that they have been vaccinated against COVID-19, but also to those who have tested negative for the virus or can prove that they recovered from it.
“Being vaccinated will not be a prerequisite for traveling,” said the European Commission. “All EU citizens have the fundamental right to free movement within the EU, and this applies regardless of whether they are vaccinated or not. The Digital Green Certificate will make it easier to exercise this right, also through test and recovery certificates. “
According to data compiled by the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, less than 5% of European citizens have been fully vaccinated amid delays in the delivery and production of vaccines. The European Commission says it remains confident that it can reach its goal of vaccinating 70% of the EU’s adult population by the end of the summer.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said travel certificates “will help boost tourism and the economies that depend heavily on it”. Europe’s aviation industry has asked EU governments to ensure that passes are operational in time for the peak of the summer travel season.
The commission proposed that all rubber stamp vaccines from the European Medicines Agency should be recognized automatically, but it also offered governments the possibility to include other vaccines such as Russia’s Sputnik or China’s Sinovac, which did not receive marketing authorization from HUH.
The European Commission guaranteed that “a very high level of data protection will be guaranteed” and stated that the certificates will be issued in digital format to be presented on smartphones or on paper.
EU officials also hope that vaccine certificates will convince member states that have introduced travel restrictions with the aim of slowing the rate of new infections to suspend their measures. The EU’s executive arm has already warned six countries that its travel limitation measures, which in Belgium go so far as to prohibit non-essential travel, could undermine the EU’s basic principle of traveling for free and undermining the single market.
The commission said that certificates should be suspended once the World Health Organization has declared the end of the COVID-19 pandemic.
If agreed by EU leaders, the proposal will need to be approved by EU legislators to take effect.
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Karel Janicek in Prague contributed to this story.
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