The European Union has been planning a "travel light" system for some time, and it has now launched with the goal of providing a better overview of the COVID-19 pandemic across the EU and helping to re-open travel. The system leverages data from Stockholm's European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) on the 14-day cumulative incidence rate, testing rate and testing positivity rates, which are used to classify countries and individual regions as green, orange or red.
Here is what each color means:
- Green is for regions reporting less than 25 new infections per 100,000 inhabitants, and test positivity is below 4%
- Orange is for regions reporting less than 50 new infections, and test positivity is over 4% — or the incidence is between 25 and 150 and test positivity is below 4%
- Red is for regions with more than 50 new infections per 100,000 incidents, and test positivity is over 4% — or the incidence is over 150 per 100,000 in the past 14 days
- Grey is a fourth category that applies if there is insufficient information or if the testing rate is lower than 300 per 100,000 people
The hope is that these suggested rules, and the corresponding maps, make it easier for travelers to know where they can travel, what rules they need to follow when they get there and what rules apply upon their return home. The maps will be published every Thursday and are based on data reported by EU Member States to The European Surveillance System (TESSy) each Tuesday. For a list of the countries that are included in the maps published by the ECDC, see this one on Ireland's Department of Foreign Affairs page. You'll also find information about entry restrictions currently applied by Member States on their country-specific travel advice pages.
An additional resource is the Re-open EU site. Re-open EU provides information on the various restrictions in place, including quarantine and testing requirements for travelers and mobile coronavirus contact tracing and warning apps. This should help individuals and mobility programs plan for travel in Europe, while staying safe and healthy. The UK is not part of the system and each country participates voluntarily.
Lonely Planet points out that, "Travelers should note that what is standard about this system is the statistical method by which the risk level is calculated, not the response of your intended destination." Travelers will still need to abide by the restrictions of each country they are in and returning to.