(Image: Unsplash)
Cover (Image: Unsplash)

The move comes just in time for the summer holidays and will hopefully improve the economic situation in the EU

After closing their borders for over a year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the European Union (EU) could finally be opening their borders to fully vaccinated tourists in June this year, which is in time for the summer holidays. The tourists allowed in would be from countries with low Covid-19 infection rates. 

In the plan, which was revealed on Monday by the EU, officials announced that the move came just as most members of the 27-nation bloc were planning to move ahead with the opening. 

(Related: Covid-19 Vaccine: These Countries are Now Welcoming Vaccinated Travellers)

In fact, Greece, in an announcement made last month, had already said that all fully vaccinated or tested travellers could enter their country from mid-May onwards. 

Under the current restrictions, only travellers from seven countries are allowed to enter the EU for non-essential travel regardless of whether they have been vaccinated or not. These countries include Singapore and Australia and still require travellers to be tested and quarantined. 

With the new proposals, the EU would require travellers to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 and to have a "good epidemiological situation" before they would be allowed in. 

The EU also suggested that an emergency break should be introduced to limit the risk of importing new cases or variants of the virus. This means that travel restrictions would be able to come into place quickly should a country experience a deterioration in its Covid-19 situations.

EU member states will be discussing this proposal this week. 

(Related: Singapore, Malaysia to Allow Cross-Border Travel on Compassionate Grounds From May 17)