Digital certificate not required by Bulgaria, upon returning of Romanian nationals from green list destinations

From Friday, August 13, for crossing the borders into European Union countries that require a vaccination certificate, negative test or proof of illness, only digital certificates will be recognised as documents proving them, according to a press statement released on Thursday by the National Association of Travel Agencies in Romania (ANAT).

However, the countries that do not require upon entry a vaccination certificate, negative test or proof of illness, such as Bulgaria, or the countries on the COVID-19 green list from which Romanian nationals return to the country, the presentation of the digital certificate is not mandatory, according to ANAT .

Basically, the digital certificate is necessary only where at the crossing of the border into an EU state a vaccination certificate, negative test or proof of illness is required.

"Starting Friday, August 13, 2021, for the crossing of state borders into EU countries, only digital certificates, documents containing a QR code and that can be issued very easily by accessing the website https://vaccinare-covid.gov.ro/. Border crossing is possible without the existence of these certificates, but with the observance of the national quarantine norms in each state. The relevant provisions are provided for in the EU Regulation 953/2021 and are applicable only for the crossing of state borders, not for the activities carried out on the national soil of Romania."

ANAT underlines that the obligation to present the digital certificate is in place only in the countries that require such documents, including a vaccination certificate, PCR/antigen tests or proof of immunisation, as well as upon returning to Romania from yellow and red list destinations.

Tourists returning from a country on the green list do not have to present the digital certificate and are not quarantined, according to ANAT.

ANAT Chairman Dumitru Luca, explained that downloading digital certificates from the national platform is very easy.

"Unfortunately, this measure has been misinterpreted and misconstrued, causing panic. Firstly, the digital certificate only applies to EU countries. Secondly, the certificate is only required where at the border crossing to another EU member state, or upon return to Romania, a vaccination certificate or a PCR / antigen test or proof of immunisation is required, for example, tourists returning from yellow or red countries will need it, while those returning from green countries will not. The digital certificate is based on a uniform system that guarantees the authenticity of vaccines or tests, in order to avoid their falsification and we recommend you to download it, which is very easy. Otherwise, we are not dealing with any change," said Luca.