Digital Covid vaccine passport is now required to travel to the 27-nation European Union bloc effective July 1

If you’re planning to travel to Europe, you better make sure you have your digital covid vaccine passport ready. Today, European Union (EU) officials signed into law digital Covid passports allowing the 27-nation bloc to open their borders for summer travel. Effective July 1, a digital covid vaccine passport will now be required for anyone traveling across the 27-nation European Union bloc Effective July 1.

Today, the presidents of the three main EU institutions – the Parliament, the Council, and the Commission – signed the Regulation at an official signing ceremony. The Regulation is set to remain in effect until June 31, 2022.

Below is a Twitter video of the official signing ceremony.

EU officials signed into law digital Covid passports allowing the 27-nation bloc to open their borders for summer travel pic.twitter.com/z9CqhkDvBp

— Bloomberg Originals (@bbgoriginals) June 14, 2021

The digital covid vaccine passport will be issued only to travelers who have been vaccinated with one of the vaccines approved by the European Medicines Agency, those who have recently recovered from COVID-19, as well those who test negative for COVID-19. According to the announcement, all tourists including Americans will have to produce proof of vaccination for entry.

“Our Union showed again that we work best when we work together. The EU Digital COVID Certificate Regulation was agreed between our institutions in the record time of 62 days. While we worked through the legislative process, we also built the technical backbone of the system, the EU gateway, which is live since June 1,” the Presidents said.

The EU Commission first brought the proposal for the establishment of a Digital Covid Vaccine Passport that would make it possible to restore the freedom of movement in the block in mid-March this year.

“The EU Certificate will again enable citizens to enjoy this most tangible and cherished of EU rights – the right to free movement. Signed into law today, it will enable us to travel more safely this summer. Today we reaffirm together that an open Europe prevails,” the Presidents said during the ceremony.

Upon the official signature today, the Member States are required to start issuing the first certificates within six weeks if they haven’t already done so. On June 1, Bulgaria, Czechia, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Croatia, and Poland became the first countries to issued the Covid digital passports to their citizens. Austria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, and Spain started issuing the first passports to their citizens on June 2.

Meanwhile, the rest of the EU and Schengen Area countries, except for Hungary and Finland, which are still in the test phase, are technically ready to connect to the EUDCC gateway.