Ireland sets new rules for international travel
The new rules for travel to Ireland have come into force on Tuesday, February 1.
From today on wards, COVID-19 vaccine certificates for a primary vaccination series will not be accepted for travel to Ireland if more than 270 days (approximately 9 months) have passed since the final dose in the primary vaccine series.
However, vaccine certificates based on booster/additional doses are not time-limited.
The new 270-day rule for primary vaccinations is being introduced across the EU as a result of changes to the EU Digital COVID Cert Regulations.
All passengers traveling to Ireland must fill out a Passenger Locator Form (PLF) before departure. The form will indicate which form of proof you are traveling to Ireland with (proof of vaccination; proof of recovery; or PCR COVID-19 test result).
Passengers must also carry the relevant medical document. The travel carrier will check your PLF receipt and your PCR test result, where required, prior to departure to Ireland and you may be asked to present these documents on arrival to Ireland. Please retain your proof of vaccination, recovery, or PCR test result for 14 days after arrival.
From February 1, there will be a standard acceptance period of 14 days after the final dose in a primary vaccine series of a vaccine listed below (note: booster/additional doses are not subject to an acceptance period):
- 2 doses of Pfizer-BioNtech Vaccine: BNT162b2 (Comirnaty®)
- 2 doses of Moderna Vaccine: CX-024414 (Moderna®)
- 2 doses of Oxford-AstraZeneca Vaccine: ChAdOx1-SARS-COV-2 (Vaxzevria® or Covishield)
- 1 dose of Johnson & Johnson/Janssen Vaccine: Ad26.COV2-S [recombinant] (Janssen®)
- 2 doses of Coronavac (Sinovac)
- 2 doses of Sinopharm BIBP
- 2 doses of Covaxin
- 2 doses of Novavax (Nuvaxovid) (applicable from 1 February 2022)
- A heterologous (mixed) dose of any of the above vaccines
- A single dose of any of the above vaccines administered within 180 days of a positive RT-PCR test result. The traveler must hold proof of the positive test and the vaccine dose
An EU Digital COVID Certificate can be used as evidence for travel of COVID-19 vaccination, booster vaccination, recovery from COVID-19, or proof of a negative COVID-19 test. You can find out how to get your Digital COVID Certificate online here.
Passengers traveling to Ireland without proof of vaccination or proof of recovery from COVID-19 in the prior 6 months must show evidence of a negative (‘not detected’) PCR test result taken within 72 hours prior to arriving in Ireland. Only PCR test results are accepted for passengers to Ireland.
In situations where a person is unable to present evidence of a negative (‘not detected’) PCR test prior to travel due to continuing to test persistently positive after infection – a positive PCR result from a test taken 11 or more days prior to the date on which the person arrives in the State and no more than 180 days prior to the date on which the person arrives, will be accepted.
It is an offense to travel to Ireland from overseas without a pre-departure test result unless exempt. A passenger who travels without a test result or an exemption is required to take a PCR test within 36 hours following arrival.
Any individual that develops COVID-19 symptoms while in Ireland should follow the HSE guidance in relation to isolation and undertaking antigen or PCR testing as appropriate.
Before traveling to Ireland, you should consult gov.ie/travel.
