EU proposes to extend COVID certificates by 1 year

BRUSSELS — The European Commission proposed Thursday to extend by a year the use of COVID certificates aimed at facilitating travel across the 27-nation bloc during the pandemic, until the end of June 2023. The COVID-19 certificates entered into force in July last year and have been a successful tool to help EU citizens travel in the region in coronavirus times without restrictions such as quarantines. Under the updated rules in place since February, EU countries must accept vaccination certificates for a period of nine months following the administration of the last dose of the primary vaccination, or after the booster shot. In addition to the extension, the EU’s executive branch proposed that certificates may be issued to people participating in clinical trials for COVID-19 shots to encourage vaccine research.