The European Commission has called on European Union member
states to harmonise the way they handle EU digital Covid certificates (DCCs)
in order to reap their benefits fully and avoid airport queueing later in the summer when travel volumes are expected to increase.
In a communication from the Commission,
it said that there are currently 15 different ways of organising the
verification process for DCCs, which were officially introduced on 1 July. These varied methods are shown in the diagram below.
“Some EU member states have, for example, decided to pass on
the responsibility to verify the EU DCC to airports, while others have placed
this obligation on airlines, and some on both. Many EU member states have also
opted for public authorities to verify the EU DCC of arriving passengers,” it said.
The Commission believes that without more standardisation, the
bloc’s airports risk bottlenecks and crowding that could increase the risk of
Covid infections.
It said, “So far, airports and airlines have taken steps to process
the increasing passenger flow, for example by reopening terminals that were
closed and by increasing the number of staff at airline check-ins or
information desks. This has helped to manage the first increase of passenger
numbers but risks falling short of the capacity needs to be expected later
during the summer of 2021.”
The EC has called for the introduction of “one-stop”
arrangements at departure as far as possible between authorities, airports and
airlines to avoid the duplication of checks. It recommends that verification of
the DCC is done before the passenger arrives at the departure airport, either
through the online check-in process or using a dedicated website or application.
“The harmonisation and digitalisation of verification
protocols is key to delivering a seamless experience to the European travelling
public,” the Commission said.