Travelers and vacationers, bring your European pass. The European health certificate comes into force on July 1 to facilitate travel within the European Union this summer.

But what is it all about? First thing to know: the “European Covid digital certificate”, the official name of this health pass, is free. It comes in the form of a specific QR code, different from that of the French health pass, which continues to be valid on national territory. It can be presented in paper or digital version, in the notebook tab of the TousAntiCovid application.

What does it tell?

This “pass” applies to three situations by certifying, at your choice, that a person:

• was vaccinated against covid-19 with one of the four vaccines authorized at European level: Pfizer / BioNTech, Moderna, AstraZeneca or Johnson & Johnson.
• passed a negative test : within 72 hours before arrival for a PCR test and within 48 hours for an antigen test. Be careful to calculate correctly if you plan to make stopovers or transit through different countries. Also note: all countries accept PCRs but it is up to each of them to accept or not the antigens.
• is immune after contracting the disease. The proof is then a certificate of recovery, which is based on a positive PCR test dating back less than 180 days.

Also read: I got vaccinated two months ago, how can I get my QR code?

How to get it ?

If you have been vaccinated, your vaccination certificate in European format can be downloaded from the health insurance website attestation-vaccin.ameli.fr.

To retrieve the QR code of the results of your PCR or antigen tests, go to the platform SI-DEP. You can also go to the laboratory where you performed your test and request a reissue of the results.

Finally, if you have already downloaded a certificate in TousAntiCovid, you can directly convert it into a European pass in the application. To do this, open the document in the app and click on “convert to European format”.

Where will it be asked?

This pass will be required to travel in 31 countries : the 27 countries of the European Union, but also Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Iceland and Norway.

Do children have to have one too?

The European health pass is required from 11 years old. As vaccination is only allowed from the age of 12, children aged 11 cannot present a vaccination certificate but may present a negative test or a certificate of recovery.

Does the European pass exempt you from quarantine?

The certificate is supposed to exempt its holder from an additional test or quarantine on arrival, but it is still possible for a Member State to introduce restrictions if the situation of the country or region of origin of the traveler is deteriorated.

Before your trip, consult the website Re-open EU which lists the conditions applicable in the various European countries.

And if you are traveling outside the European Union, go to the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs diplomatie.gouv.fr to find out the rules in force in your destination country.