International travelers planning to enter the European Union/Schengen area, as well as EU citizens wishing to travel within the bloc, may face difficulties from 1 February as their vaccination certificates will no longer be recognized.
Following the adoption by the EU Commission of new rules regarding the vaccination certificate, the countries of the EU and the Schengen area have announced that additional rules will apply to all travelers whose vaccination certificates expire on February 1st.
This means that once the new rules go into effect, those with an expired pass stating primary vaccination only will be subject to stricter entry rules, such as testing and quarantine requirements, according to SchengenVisaInfo.com.
On the other hand, those who received an extra dose of the vaccine, also known as a booster shot, as well as those who received a second dose more recently, will be able to travel under lighter rules without having to undergo testing and quarantine.
Although the Commission suggested that the vaccination pass remain valid for 270 days after receiving the second dose, Member States were free to decide on travel arrangements.
Austria, the Netherlands and Switzerland are just a few of the EU/Schengen countries that have already announced that new measures will come into effect from next Tuesday.
Austrian authorities announced last week that primary vaccination certificates would only allow entry into the country if the last dose was received within the last 270 days. However, it was stressed that only vaccination passes showing full vaccination within the last 180 days will be accepted in Austria to confirm 2-G status.
“To confirm the status of” 2-G “during the stay in Austria, starting from February 1, 2022, the validity of the second vaccination will be reduced to 180 days,” the Austrian authorities stressed.
Like Austria, the Dutch authorities said that from February 1, the validity of vaccination certificates will be reduced from 12 to nine months. This means that everyone must be vaccinated in order for their pass to be valid when entering the Netherlands.
In addition, Switzerland will also follow the recommendation of the EU Commission and will only accept vaccination passes showing that the holder has received the last dose of vaccine within 270 days. It is explained that the duration of the vaccination pass can be extended by receiving an additional dose.
Unlike other countries, the Belgian Advisory Committee has decided to reduce the validity of vaccination certificates from 270 days to 150 days, starting March 1st. This decision was made in order to encourage more people to receive an additional dose of COVID-19.