As of today (1st February), the EU will introduce the requirement for a booster vaccine to be included on EU covid certificates that contain previous vaccines older than 9 months old.
Just like the Spanish government move last week, those who received their second EU approved vaccine more than 270 days before their day of travel will be required to take a booster vaccine at least 14 days before travel.
Alternatively, those without the booster vaccine can take a PCR test within a time period before departure or apply for a certificate to verify proof of recovery from covid-19.
Pat Dawson, CEO of the Irish Travel Agents Association stated:
“It has been well flagged by the European Union that the original EU Digital Covid certs have a nine month validity. With the level of booster vaccinations in this country, everyone who has had a booster can get their updated EU digital cert. Anybody who has had COVID-19 and is not eligible for the booster can go to www.gov.ie to obtain a recovery certification, so this should not cause any issues whatsoever.”
Paul Hackett President of the Irish Travel Agents Association confirmed:
“This EU wide decision and the EU commission has been very good with handling the digital COVID-19 certifications and ensuring consistency across all member states. This means that when traveling anywhere in the EU, the rules are pretty much the same. However, the ITAA do advise that you receive up to date guidelines from your travel agent or check out dfa.ie for updated travel information before travelling.”
This measure does not affect CovidCertNI holders, however, all travellers are advised to check official government guidelines at www.gov.uk
