Following the Maltese government’s announcement on Friday that from July 14th only vaccinated travellers would be permitted into the country, they have now decided to abandon this plan.
1. A change of plans
The government’s original plan, which had received criticism from the European Commission, required a vaccination certificate for all travellers, meaning that as of Wednesday July 14th, a PCR Covid-19 test would no longer be enough to travel to Malta. However this has now been changed. According to an announcement yesterday, arrivals will instead face an undisclosed period of quarantine. The compulsory self-isolation period for those arriving from countries certified as “red” is currently already 14 days. Since June 1st, Malta has been once again welcoming tourists from the EU, the United States and a few other countries provided they presented a negative Covid test when boarding a plane to Malta, or if they were fully vaccinated. The short notice of the government’s original plans therefore would have put many travellers in a difficult situation. The plans also appeared to shut the door completely on tourists from the United States and other nationalities as the proof of vaccine required to enter the country had to be “a recognised vaccination certificate: a Maltese certificate, a British certificate or a certificate of the European Union”.
2. Criticism from the European Commission
From the outset, the Maltese government’s original plan had brought criticism from the European Commission, who expressed concerns that the ban could be discriminatory. On Monday, the European Commissioner for Justice, Didier Reynders, said the European Commission was hoping to get Malta to reverse the border closure. “There have been two decisions: the certificate that has been put in place and that is required as proof of your health situation with regard to the viral infection. Then there is a recommendation adopted by the 27 States, which is based on the idea that the passport is sufficient in itself, unless the health situation deteriorates,” he said.
We will therefore discuss with Malta so that it accepts PCR tests. Depending on the level of contamination by the Delta variant, it is normal that we resume measures, testing and quarantine, but not a travel ban.
Didier Reynders, European Commissioner for Justice
European Commissioner Thierry Breton also suggested from the outset that the government could end up adapting Malta’s decision to ban unvaccinated travellers in order to ensure that any restrictions are non-discriminatory. He suggested that Malta could use alternative measures to ensure unvaccinated travellers are not discriminated against, for example mandatory quarantine periods for unvaccinated travellers. “Each state has its own situation,” he said at the time, acknowledging that decisions taken on the issue are subject to government’s discretion. “I am confident that government will be able to adapt this decision”. A prediction that did in fact come true.
I am confident that government will be able to adapt this decision
Thierry Breton, European Commissioner
In response to Malta’s initial plans European Commissioner spokesperson Christian Wigand also highlighted that any Coronavirus travel restriction established must be “proportionate and non-discriminatory”. He stressed that European Union countries could introduce measures to protect public health, but the Commission had asked Malta’s authorities to explain their measures imposed to stop the virus.
We have concerns that these measures could discriminate against those persons who are not fully vaccinated.
Christian Wigand, European Commissioner spokesperson
In addition to criticism from the EU, Malta’s initial plans to ban unvaccinated travellers also drew criticism from other countries, whilst the forum for the travel and tourism industry, World Travel and Tourism Council, called on governments worldwide not to shut the doors to unvaccinated travellers.
Malta, an island of around 500,000, people prides itself on being the most vaccinated country in the EU, with 79% of the adult population having received the two doses of serum. Unlike in other European countries, the rise in the number of new Covid-19 cases is not due to the spread of the highly contagious Delta variant: Malta’s public health chief, Charmaine Gauci, said Friday that only seven of the country’s 252 active cases were infected with this variant. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Malta has recorded 31 061 cases, including 420 deaths according to the figures published by the World Health Organisation.
