US nationals who have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19 will be able to travel to the European Union this summer, announced the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, in an interview with The New York Times on Sunday, April 25th.
All 27 member states will accept, unconditionally, all those who are vaccinated with vaccines that are approved by E.M.A
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission
The lifting of the restrictions, however, will continue to depend on the evolution of the epidemiological situation in Europe. Von der Leyen went on to say that the situation is improving in the US “as it is, hopefully, also in the European Union.” She did not provide details on when travel from the US could restart.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) was nonetheless encouraged by Ursula von der Leyen’s comments.
“This is a step in the right direction. It gives hope to people for so many reasons—to travel, to reunite with loved ones, to develop business opportunities or to get back to work. To be fully prepared, it is imperative that the EC works with the industry so that airlines can plan within the public health benchmarks and timelines that will enable unconditional travel for those vaccinated, not just from the US but from all countries using vaccines that are approved by the European Medicines Association. Equally critical will be clear, simple and secure digital processes for vaccination certificates. The IATA Travel Pass can help industry and governments manage and verify vaccination status, as it does with testing certificates. But we are still awaiting the development of globally recognized standards for digital vaccine certificates. As a first step, it is vital that the EU accelerates adoption of the European Green Certificate,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General.
In early April, French President Emmanuel Macron told CBC News that France was evaluating plans to allow vaccinated US nationals into the country.
