The electronic Green Passport by QR code announced for June 4 will be delayed by at least a week. This was announced by the Ministry of Health in a press release and published by the Austrian press Agency and several Austrian daily newspapers. The reason given is changes in technical requirements announced at short notice by the EU, which make IT adjustments necessary in Austria. As a result, Austrians will have to prove their 3-Gs – tested, recovered or vaccinated – in the previous form for the time being.
“Last week, changes to the technical requirements were announced by the EU at short notice. Adjustments for national systems are therefore still necessary,” the ministry said. This leads to the fact “that the launch of the digital green passport by means of QR code will in any case be delayed by one week and thus cannot take place as planned on June 4.” Work on a secure and user-friendly application “is in full swing and is supported by the system partners, consisting of the federal government, the states and social security,” the department said.
There is no fixed new start date for the QR code; implementation is taking place “step by step,” the ministry said. In any case, the legal basis for the EU-compliant green passport will apply from June 4. However, the use of the QR code for convalescents and vaccinated people will be delayed by at least a week and gradually introduced in a transition phase. In the tests, there are already QR codes in some cases now, and there will be one later in all tests made in laboratories or test streets.
In the case of children, there is a change from July 1. At any time, children from the age of ten must be tested; in the future, this will only be necessary from the age of twelve. This age increase synchronizes the requirements with vaccinations, as the Biontech/Pfizer vaccine has been released for children over twelve.
The Green Passport is to be rolled out across the EU in July, after which the respective certificates will be mutually recognized at the borders by the member states. It should be noted, however, that despite the Green Passport, different rules apply in all countries. The ministry advises that it is therefore important to find out which regulations apply in the respective country before traveling.
The fact that the introduction of the Green Passport with QR code has been delayed is not surprising. Numerous critical voices have warned from the outset that the rush by the German government, which wanted the Green Passport before July at all costs, would not pay off.
— source: APA/picture: pixabay.com
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