Minister says it’s not guaranteed non-essential travel restrictions will be lifted on 19 July

He also said that people who have not been vaccinated yet will be required to pay for their own digital travel certificates.

Minister of State Ossian Smyth has said that it's not guaranteed non-essential travel restrictions will be lifted on 19 July. He also said that the HSE will not be providing free digital travel certificates for people who have yet to receive their Covid-19 vaccinations. "On the 19 July, the current plan is to reopen international travel at that point. To facilitate the large number of people going through the airport at that point there is a European plan that people will use, these Covid certificates," he told RTÉ radio’s Today with Claire Byrne show on Tuesday. "We are assuming that international travel will reopen on 19 July, we can't guarantee that at the moment, but that is what's in the plan." Smyth added that we "absolutely need" the EU green cert in order to facilitate large-scale international travel.

He said that the EU green certs which are set to rollout in July will use a barcode to allow airport staff to scan to check if a person is vaccinated, has a negative PCR test, or has previously had Covid-19.

Smyth said that people who don't have a green certificate will be able to follow the current process and take a PCR test. However, anyone who is not vaccinated who wants to make a non-essential journey after 19 July will have to get a private laboratory test to get the digital certificate. Smyth also pointed out that a person did not require a PCR test to leave the country, but it could be required to enter another country and would be required on return to Ireland. "The HSE’s focus is on public health and on tests to isolate the virus, so they will not be using resources to provide test results for people wishing to travel," he said.