European Union member states agreed on May 19 to reopen EU borders to travelers who have been fully vaccinated with the new crown vaccine, sources said, adding that EU ministers will formally adopt the proposal on May 21.
Diplomats said that under the new rules, travelers who can prove they have received the required doses of the EU-approved vaccine will be allowed to enter the EU, AFP reported.
In addition, EU diplomats also agreed to relax the criteria for identifying safe countries, from 25 cases per 100,000 people to 75 cases per 100,000 people in a two-week period, when the number of new confirmed cases of novel coronavirus (CCHV) infections among 100,000 people is below the EU average. This move will allow travelers from more places to enter the EU.
The current list of safe countries includes only seven countries – Australia, Israel, New Zealand, Rwanda, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand – and China will only be included if Beijing agrees to reciprocate.
Reuters reported that the EU is expected to list the new list this week or next week. According to the European Center for Disease Control and Prevention (ECDC), the U.K. and several other countries will meet the new criteria; the U.S. does not, but Americans who have been vaccinated are still welcome in Europe.
An EU diplomat said that cases of the Indian variant of the virus in the UK will also have to be taken into account, but individual EU countries have developed their own policies, such as Portugal, which has lifted a four-month travel ban on British travellers since 17.
In addition, EU member states also agreed to set up a synchronized emergency response mechanism to respond to the sudden emergence of a non-EU country COVID-19 new mutant virus, can quickly suspend the entry of travelers from that country.
From March 2020, the 27-nation EU will prohibit entry of travelers from all countries if not necessary, except for a few countries with low infection rates that are deemed safe. At the same time, Member States agreed to establish a coordinated emergency mechanism for the immediate termination of entry permits for people from third countries in the event of a rapid decline in the outbreak due to the emergence of a mutated virus.
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