Italy eases covid travel rules for non-EU visitors

Rome: Italy allowed travellers from outside the European Union to enter the country quarantine-free as of March 1, under new travel rules.

Visitors from non-EU nations are no longer required to show both proof of vaccination or recovery from covid and a negative test result.

The easing of travel restrictions brings Italy in line with other EU countries and means that tourists from outside the EU no longer have to undergo quarantine on arrival.

A pre-departure covid test remains necessary for unvaccinated tourists and for those who have received vaccines not recognised by the European Medicines Agency (EMA), such as Sputnik.

“From 1 March, for arrivals from all non-European countries, the same rules already in place for European countries will be in force” – Speranza wrote on Twitter – “For entry into Italy, one of the conditions of the Green Pass will be sufficient: vaccination certificate, recovery certificate or negative test.”

The Green Pass (or its equivalent) is a certificate proving that the holder has been vaccinated for covid, recovered within the last six months or tested negative within the previous couple of days.

Italy’s decision to ease travel rules follows an EU recommendation that member states “should lift the temporary restriction on non-essential travel to the EU for persons vaccinated with an EU- or WHO-approved vaccine, provided they have received the last dose of the primary vaccination series at least 14 days and no more than 270 days before arrival or they have received a booster dose.”

The move is the latest in a series of restrictions to be relaxed in Italy, from the wearing of masks outdoors to a reduced quarantine system for schools, amid an improving covid situation.

The easing of travel restrictions comes as Italy’s tourism sector prepares for the Easter holiday season, with a progressive “reopening” of the country promised recently by Italian premier Mario Draghi.

However, for unvaccinated tourists in Italy, it is worth noting that a Green Pass is required to access most activities and services, with the unvaccinated banned from restaurants and public transport.

A two-tiered Green Pass system remains in place, with a “basic” version of the Green Pass available via a negative covid test result, alongside the “Super” version which can only be obtained by people who are vaccinated or have recovered from covid.

However the Green Pass system is expected to be dismantled gradually as Italy heads into a “new phase” after the country’s state of emergency expires on 31 March.