What is the EU Digital COVID Certificate?

What is the EU Digital COVID Certificate?

An EU Digital COVID Certificate is a digital proof that a person has either

	been vaccinated against COVID-19
	received a negative test result or
	recovered from COVID-19

Key features of the certificate

• Digital and/or paper format

• with QR code

• free of charge

• in national language and English

• safe and secure

• valid in all EU countries

Who can get the EU Digital COVID certificate?

• All EU citizens and their family members

• Non-EU nationals who are legally staying or residing in a Member State and have the right to travel to other Member States

Can children get the EU Digital COVID certificate?

Yes, children can get an EU Digital COVID Certificate.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has given its green light to the use of the BioNTech Pfizer vaccine Comirnaty and the Moderna vaccine Spikevax for children of 12-17 years. Children can also receive a test or recovery certificate. These certificates could also be received by their parents and stored in the parents' smartphone app.

EU Member States also agreed that minors travelling with parents should be exempt from quarantine when the parents do not need to undergo quarantine, for example due to vaccination. Children under 12 should also be exempt from travel-related testing.

How can citizens get the certificate?

National authorities are in charge of issuing the certificate. It could, for example, be issued by test centres or health authorities, or directly via an eHealth portal. 

• Vaccination certificates are issued by the Member State where the vaccination has been administered.

• Test certificates are issued by the Member State where the test has taken place.

• Recovery certificates are issued by the Member State where the recovered person is located.

Information on how to get the certificate should be provided by the national health authorities. 

The digital version can be stored on a mobile device. Citizens can also request a paper version. Both will have a QR code that contains essential information, as well as a digital signature to make sure the certificate is authentic.

Member States have agreed on a common design that can be used for the electronic and paper versions to facilitate the recognition.

How does it help free movement?

The EU Digital COVID Certificate is accepted in all EU Member States. It helps ensuring that restrictions currently in place can be lifted in a coordinated manner.

When travelling, the EU Digital COVID Certificate holder should in principle be exempt from free movement restrictions: Member States should refrain from imposing additional travel restrictions on the holders of an EU Digital COVID Certificate, unless they are necessary and proportionate to safeguard public health. 

In such a case – for instance as a reaction to new variants of concern – that Member State would have to notify the Commission and all other Member States and justify this decision.

How does the certificate work?

	The EU Digital COVID Certificate contains a QR code with a digital signature to protect it against falsification.
	When the certificate is checked, the QR code is scanned and the signature verified.
	Each issuing body (e.g. a hospital, a test centre, a health authority) has its own digital signature key. All of these are stored in a secure database in each country.
	The European Commission has built a gateway through which all certificate signatures can be verified across the EU. The personal data of the certificate holder does not pass through the gateway, as this is not necessary to verify the digital signature. The European Commission also helped Member States to develop national software and apps to issue, store and verify certificates and supported them in the necessary tests to on-board the gateway.

Are citizens who are not yet vaccinated able to travel to another EU country?

Yes. The EU Digital COVID Certificate should facilitate free movement inside the EU. It is not a pre-condition to free movement, which is a fundamental right in the EU. 

Without a certificate, you might however be subject to restrictions like testing or quarantine. Member States can introduce travel restrictions. Please check Re-openEU for the latest updates.

To ensure that there is no discrimination against individuals who are not vaccinated, the EU Digital COVID Certificate also covers test certificates and certificates for persons who have recovered from COVID-19. This way everyone can benefit from the EU Digital COVID Certificate.

The recommendation on coordinating free movement restrictions in the EU was amended mid-June with a view to the holiday season, further clarifying exemptions for fully vaccinated and recovered persons, efforts to ensure family unity (exempting children traveling with their parents from quarantine, if parents are exempted) and the updated colour-coding of the ECDC map.

Does it matter which vaccine citizens received?

Vaccination certificates will be issued to a vaccinated person for any COVID-19 vaccine. The certificate should clearly indicate the name of the vaccine administered.

When it comes to waiving free movement restrictions, Member States only have to accept vaccination certificates for vaccines which received EU marketing authorisation. Member States may also decide to waive restrictions for travellers that received another vaccine, for instance those included on the WHO emergency list, but they are not obliged to. If you have been vaccinated with a vaccine not authorised in the EU, we advise you to check which vaccines are accepted by the respective Member State prior to your travel.

Fully vaccinated persons with the EU Digital COVID Certificate should be exempted from travel-related testing or quarantine 14 days after having received the last dose of a COVID-19 vaccine approved for the entire EU. The same is true for recovered persons with the certificate.