Seven European countries have launched the EU Digital Covid Certificate, a month ahead of the deadline for its implementation.
The certificate was initially proposed by the European Commission in March under the name of ‘Digital Green Certificate’ with the intention of facilitating safe travel within the EU during the pandemic.
The certificate provides proof that a person has been vaccinated against Covid-19, has tested negative for the virus, or has recovered from an infection. It is free of charge, and the countries say it is secure and accessible to all, with both digital and paper formats available.
While it will only become available in all Member States from July 1, countries that have passed the technical tests can begin to issue certificates immediately. These include Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Greece, and Poland.
Certain countries have decided to only launch the certificate once all functions are deployed nationwide, with the EU Commission stating that more countries are set to join “in the coming days and weeks”.
The EU Commission stated:
We urge EU countries to get fully ready, so the system will be fully up and running on 1 July.
Citizens will receive the certificate either automatically or upon request once they have received a vaccine “irrespective of the number of doses” in an EU country. Those that were vaccinated in a non-EU country can request the certificate from the Member State of their nationality or residence; this will be issued if there is a reliable proof of vaccination.
