Scots holidaymakers could be banned from travelling to a number of European holiday hotspots if they have not received their Covid booster jab.
The European Union’s health agency is expected to reveal new travel guidelines which will be based on the vaccination status, instead of the country of origin.
Guidance will state how long vaccinations should remain valid for and how it will impact recipients' freedoms to enter venues and travel around, the Mirror reports.
France recently announced an expiration date on vaccine certificates. From December 15, anyone over 65 will be allowed to take trains, enter restaurants and attend cultural events if they have evidence of their booster vaccination.
This proof of the booster vaccination will mean that the Covid pass will stay valid.
The new guidelines will not mean a ban on unvaccinated travel, according to iNews, a valid negative test uploaded onto the Covid pass will be a second option for travellers who have had their second jab more than six months earlier.
Travellers going down this route will have to be aware of the rules, and potentially pay for testing.
There was not yet an overall consensus from the EU on how soon the Covid pass would expire after the second vaccine.
Six, nine and 12 month periods had all been suggested.
The move is aimed at clarifying rules on free travel, as EU members adopt different approaches to managing booster jabs.
The Commission’s move to rewrite the guidelines comes hot on the heels of the EU’s public health agency calling for vaccine boosters to be considered for all adults.
“Countries should also consider a booster dose for all adults 18 years and older, with a priority for people above 40 years old,” said Andrea Ammon, the director of the European Centre for Disease prevention and Control (ECDC).
“There are still too many individuals at risk of severe COVID-19 infection whom we need to protect as soon as possible. We need to urgently focus on closing this immunity gap, offer booster doses to all adults, and reintroduce non-pharmaceutical measures.”
While rates of vaccination vary widely between countries in the EU, only 67.7 per cent of the population is double jabbed.
Recent data from the Scottish Government shows that more than 88 per cent of people aged 18 and over have been double vaccinated against Covid.
More than 34 per cent of people have now received a booster dose of the vaccine.
Yesterday, the Scottish Government announced that it had delivered more one and a half million third doses of the Covid vaccine.
Health Secretary Humza Yousaf said: “I am pleased by the progress so far of the Autumn/Winter vaccination programme – one and a half million third doses and boosters is a significant milestone - and I want to thank again everyone involved in the delivery. In terms of first, second and third and booster doses, I’m pleased to say Scotland is still the most vaccinated part of the UK.”
