The European Commission is discussing with the United States and the United Kingdom the recognition of Covid-19 certification that will take effect in July in the European Union, the European Commissioner for Justice announced on Monday.
We are moving forward with certification regulation to facilitate free movement in the 27 member states (EU) and, where possible, open borders with the UK and US (for non-essential travel), Didier Reynders said.
Speaking to journalists at the end of the meeting of the Council of Justice led by the Portuguese Presidency of the European Union, in Luxembourg, Didier Reynders indicated that this opening would take place “on the basis of all possible regulations for travel to Europe” and that The community executive “discusses with third countries, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, about possible mutual recognition of all degrees.”
“We are very far ahead at the European level and probably (in advance) of the same type of certification in the UK and the US,” the official said, noting that it was still necessary to define “types of proof of vaccination or recovery as well as in terms of tests”.
The subject of contention is the “Covid-19 digital certificate”, proof of test (negative), vaccination or recovery from the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which will enter into force in the European Union in time for the summer.
“I want to remind you that thanks to the Portuguese presidency, it was possible to reach an agreement on a new regulation on the Covid-19 digital certificate, and therefore, From July 1, it will finally be possible to use this document throughout Europe”by Didier Reynders.
At the moment, before the final adoption of the legal text supporting this testimony, Brussels is working to “finish new recommendations on freedom of movement” in the community space.
“I hope that this week it will be possible to make progress on this issue, and that we will have new rules at the EU level on how to lift restrictions (…) in many ways to facilitate freedom of movement,” said the European Commissioner for Justice.
The idea is that this card will go into effect on July 1 and will function similarly to a boarding pass, in digital and/or paper form, with a QR code easily readable by electronic devices, which will be available free of charge and in the citizen’s national language and in English.
This topic will be discussed in the European Parliament’s plenary session on Tuesday, with MEPs expected at that time to give their final approval and adopt the compromise text.
The Portuguese Presidency of the Council of the European Union and the European Parliament Negotiation Team began negotiations on the green digital certificate on May 3, after the MEPs, on April 29, adopted their position on the negotiations on the legislative proposal proposed by the Commission in March.
In mid-May, negotiators for the Portuguese presidency and the European Assembly reached a political agreement on the certification, and now the compromise text that puts the document into law must be formally adopted by the institutions.
Meanwhile, member states will have to develop technical infrastructure and ensure interoperability of certificate recognition systems.
It will be up to national governments to decide whether travelers with a certificate should undergo quarantine or testing, but by accepting such a document, it is expected that this will not happen, unless the epidemiological situation justifies it.
