Iceland to Keep in Place Travel Ban for Vaccinated Britons and Other Third-Country Travelers Until April 6

The Icelandic authorities have decided to postpone the entry into force of a new regulation that permits nationals of third countries who have been vaccinated against COVID-19 to enter its territory.

According to a press release of the Icelandic government, the regulation, which was planned to come into force today, on March 26, is now set to start applying on April 6, after the authorities asserted that more time is needed in order to allow scope for careful review of the procedures for evaluating and accepting documentation.

“The postponement is prudent in light of the importance of ensuring that the implementation of the new rules will be as smooth as possible while maintaining the utmost caution in terms of transmission risk,” the press release notes.

The government also notes that the Chief Epidemiologist Thorolfur Gudnason has advised the Ministry of Health on the requirements for the acceptance of documentation for vaccinated travellers, which advice is currently being under review by the ministry.

Currently, only travellers from the European Union and the European Economic Area who can prove they have been vaccinated against COVID-19 or have only recently recovered from the virus are permitted to enter the country for non-essential purposes.

However, on March 16, the government of Iceland announced that starting from March 18, vaccinated persons from third countries would also be permitted to enter the country. The government immediately changed the decision noting that entry would be permitted only a week later, starting from March 26.

In order for a UK national or a national or another third country to be eligible to enter Iceland for non-essential purposes, he/she must submit one of the following documents:

• Certificates of vaccination with a vaccine authorized by the European Medicines Agency (EMA), which are the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, the Moderna vaccine, the AstraZeneca vaccine, and the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
• Certificates from the World Health Organization (WHO) vaccines the WHO has validated, which are the Community vaccine, SK Bioscience, Covishield, and Janssen-Cilag International NV.

A document that proves recuperation from a previous COVID-19 infection that fulfils certain requirements can also grant a traveller with entry into Iceland.

According to the government, all the certificates listed above can be submitted in paper or electronic format, and they should contain information as detailed information on the certificate holder and the vaccine he/she has taken, including dates of shots.

Border control guards are responsible for checking every certificate and deciding whether they are valid or not.

Amid warnings of a third COVID-19 wave, Iceland’s Ministry of Health has decided to tighten control policies, starting from April 1. Among others, all persons coming from countries with a high-risk level of COVID-19 infection have to stay in quarantine for five days, except for those holding a certificate that proves they have been vaccinated.