De European Council adds Ukraine to the list of safe countries without travel restrictions due to Covid-19. Rwanda and Thailand, on the other hand, have been removed from the list.
The EU list is regularly evaluated and updated to reflect the current state of infections in the countries concerned. Residents of countries on the list can travel to the EU without restrictions, including non-essential travel to the EU.
List of safe countries as of July 15, 2021
Based on the criteria and conditions set out in the Recommendation, Member States should gradually lift travel restrictions at the external borders for residents of the following third countries from 15 July 2021:
- Albania
- Armenia
- Australië
- Azerbaijan
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Brunei Darussalam
- Canada
- Israel
- Japan
- Jordan
- Lebanon
- Montenegro
- New Zealand
- Qatar
- Republic of Moldova
- Republic of Macedonia
- Saudi Arabia
- Serbia
- Singapore
- South Korea
- Ukraine (new)
- United States
- China, subject to confirmation of reciprocity
Travel restrictions should also be gradually lifted for the Special Administrative Regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau.
Residents of Andorra, Monaco, San Marino and the Vatican should be considered EU residents for the purposes of this Recommendation.
The criteria to determine the third countries for which the current travel restriction should be lifted relate to the epidemiological situation and overall response to COVID-19, as well as the reliability of available information and data sources. Reciprocity is also a criteria.
With Schengen associated countries (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland) also use the list.
Background
On 30 June 2020, the Council adopted a recommendation on the gradual lifting of temporary restrictions on non-essential travel to the EU. This recommendation contained an initial list of countries for which Member States should start lifting travel restrictions at the external borders. The list is regularly reviewed and updated as appropriate.
On 20 May 2021, the Council adopted an amendment to respond to the ongoing vaccination campaigns by introducing certain exemptions for vaccinated persons and relaxing the criteria for lifting restrictions for third countries. At the same time, the amendments take into account the potential risks of new variants by introducing an emergency brake mechanism to react quickly to the emergence of new or worrying variants in a third country.
The Council Recommendation is not a legally binding instrument. Member State authorities remain responsible for implementing the content of the Recommendation. They may, in full transparency, only gradually lift travel restrictions to countries on the list.
A Member State may not decide to lift travel restrictions for non-listed third countries before this has been decided in a coordinated manner.
Source: European Council of the EU – No rights can be derived from this message.
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