European Union eyes letting fully vaccinated travelers into bloc

European Union eyes letting fully vaccinated travelers into bloc

BRUSSELS: The European Union’s executive yesterday proposed that travelers who are fully vaccinated with EU-approved jabs be able to enter the bloc, a statement said. The European Commission urged the EU’s 27 member countries – which make their own decisions on health matters – to “lift restrictions on non-essential travel for vaccinated persons travelling to the EU”.

It also wants to see travelers from countries that have done a good job in keeping COVID-19 at bay to be able to enter, based on how many infections they register per 100,000 people averaged over a two-week period. The proposal would see that infection threshold raised from the “very severe” bar of 25 cases per 100,000 decided nearly a year ago to 100 cases, an EU official involved with drafting the proposal told journalists on condition of not being identified.

“So we will no longer have the choice among, let’s say, 10 to 15 countries around the world, but member states will be able to pick up countries, international countries in a list of up to 100 countries, if the situation continues to develop in a positive way,” he said.

Proof that an individual was fully vaccinated – at least two weeks before arriving in