It is understood that fully vaccinated passengers arriving in Ireland from midnight tonight will not require a Covid-19 test.
This follows the Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly, seeking updated advice on the need for a preflight test in light of high case numbers of Omicron in Ireland.
Also tonight, it was revealed that new Digital Covid Certs will be issued from later this week, updated to show that people have received their booster vaccine.
In a post on Twitter, Minister Donnelly shared information about the certs, stating they would be automatically issued to booster vaccine recipients.
New EU regulations on travel and certificates will take effect from 1 February.
Mr Donnelly said the Digital Covid Certs “will be updated soon to reflect your additional vaccine”.
He added “The EU is applying a maximum 9 month validity to certs based on a completed primary vaccination course.
“You can also request a DCC of Recovery if you’ve recovered in the last six months via online portal.”
Earlier, the Cabinet agreed new travel rules which has now resulted in the requirement for vaccinated passengers to have a negative Covid-19 test being dropped.
However, unvaccinated travellers will still be required to show a negative PCR test taken 72 hours before arrival.
The Government moved to require all passengers to have a negative test for the virus when the Omicron variant of Covid-19 first emerged.
However, now that it is the dominant variant in Ireland, the Government has dropped that requirement for vaccinated passengers, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said today.
The Cabinet has agreed new travel rules which remove the requirement for vaccinated passengers to have a negative Covid-19 test | Read more: https://t.co/s2aSzV3fly pic.twitter.com/vJ0bPSDIbo
— RTÉ News (@rtenews) January 5, 2022
England to relax Covid-19 travel testing rules
Pre-departure Covid tests for travellers arriving in England are to be scrapped, Boris Johnson has announced.
In a Commons statement, the Prime Minister said the Omicron variant is now so prevalent in the country that the measure is having limited impact on the spread of the disease.
He told MPs the requirement for travellers to self-isolate on arrival until they receive a negative PCR test is also being dropped.
Instead, the rules will revert to the system in place in October with travellers required to take a lateral flow test no later than the end of day two after their arrival.
The measures were originally introduced following the identification of the fast-spreading Omicron variant in South Africa last November.
Mr Johnson told the House: “When the Omicron variant was first identified, we rightly introduced travel restrictions to slow its arrival in our country.
“But now Omicron is so prevalent, these measures are having limited impact on the growth in cases, while continuing to pose significant costs on our travel industry.
“So I can announce that in England from 4am on Friday, we will be scrapping the pre-departure test, which discourages many from travelling for fear of being trapped overseas and incurring significant extra expense.”
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