EU Digital COVID Certificate adopted in record time

MEPs are set to give their final approval to the EU Digital COVID Certificate, to facilitate intra-EU travel during the pandemic and contribute to the economic recovery. The Commission and Council have taken onboard many of the requests of the Parliament. 

The agreement with the Council was reached only two months after the initial proposal was presented by the Commission, with a view to it being in place in time for the summer holidays and to help those economies mostly deeply affected by the pandemic. 

The certificate, which will be free of charge and may be digital or paper, will prove that a holder has been vaccinated, recovered from the sickness or recently passed a negative test. A common framework will allow all EU member states to issue certificates that will be interoperable, compatible, secure and verifiable across the European Union.

The rapporter on the legislation, Juan Fernando Lopez Aguilar MEP, who is chair of the Civil Liberties Committee, urged member states not to impose additional travel restrictions on certificate holders - such as quarantine, self-isolation or testing - unless justified for public health reasons, and will call for the quick deployment of the system.

Once adopted by plenary, the regulations will need to be formally adopted by the Council and published in the Official Journal, before they can start applying from 1 July.

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