TBM Staff - Mumbai Travellers from non-European countries can now enter Italy for travel purposes under facilitated rules as the pre-entry testing requirement, and the non-essential travel ban has been abolished.
The news on the easing of the travel rules for third-country nationals was announced by the Minister of Health of Italy, Roberto Speranza, last week.
Since yesterday, travellers from non-EU countries are subject to the same entry rules as travellers from EU countries when reaching Italy, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
This means that travellers from non-EU countries can enter Italy restriction-free, provided that they present a valid vaccination or recovery certificate or a negative COVID-19 test result.
“Health Minister Roberto Speranza has signed a new ordinance establishing, with effect from March 1, the same rules for arrivals to Italy from all non-European countries as those already in force for European countries. For entry to the national territory, one of the conditions of the Green Pass will be sufficient: certificate of vaccination, certificate of recovery or negative test result,” the statement of the Ministry of Health reads.
Such a statement suggests that Italy will now apply entry rules based on a person’s status rather than the country of origin an individual is travelling from.
The Italian authorities have highlighted that, similar to EU travellers, nationals of third countries need to hold a valid certificate when entering Italy in order to be exempt from additional measures.
Italy currently recognises for entry all vaccination passes that prove that the holder has been fully vaccinated against the virus with one of the EMA-approved vaccines in the last nine months or has received a booster shot.
Nonetheless, it has been emphasised that while in the country, the vaccination certificate is valid only for six months. This means that only travellers who have received their last dose within the last six months can access different activities and services in Italy. Those who have received a booster shot are not subject to restrictions.
As for the recovery certificates, the Italian authorities accept this type of document for entry as long as it proves that the holder has tested positive for the COVID-19 in the last 180 days.
The decision of the Italian authorities to relax their entry rules for travellers from non-EU countries follows the recommendation of the EU Council. The Council advised all the EU Member States to remove the non-essential travel ban for all third-country nationals who have been recovered or vaccinated against the virus.
In addition, the Council also adopted new rules on the issuance of recovery certificates. The Council said that the Member States can now issue recovery certificates based on a positive rapid antigen test result.
