European Union plans digital green certificate for COVID-free, vaccinated people

The European Union plans to launch a Digital Green Certificate to facilitate safe free movement of the COVID-19 negative and vaccinated people inside its member countries.

The European Commission made the proposal to launch the certificate that would be available, free of charge, in digital or paper format. It will include a QR code to ensure security and authenticity of the certificate.

The commission will build a gateway to ensure all certificates can be verified across the EU, and support member states in the technical implementation of certificates, according to a statement issued by the European Commission on Wednesday.

The EU countries will be responsible to decide which public health restrictions can be waived for travellers but will have to apply such waivers in the same way to travellers holding the certificate.

According to the proposal, the digital green certificate will cover three types of certificates –vaccination certificates, test certificates (NAAT/RT-PCR test or a rapid antigen test), and certificates for persons who have recovered from COVID-19.

The certificate would be issued to EU citizens and their family members, regardless of their nationality. It would also be issued to non-EU nationals who reside in the EU and to visitors to other member states.

This proposal needs a swift adoption by the European Parliament and the council.

In parallel, member states must implement the trust framework and technical standards, agreed in the eHealth network, to ensure timely implementation of the digital green certificate, their interoperability and full compliance with personal data protection. The aim is to have the technical work and the proposal completed in the coming months.