Ferry travel during Covid-19 – procedures and restrictions

Important updates

1. The basic green pass is required, from 1 April 2022, in Italy, exclusively on long-distance ferries and hydrofoils, and only until 30 April. FFP2 masks are mandatory on all routes.
2. With the law 18 February 2022 n. 11 access to sea, air and land means of transport and their use, for travel to and from the islands with the rest of the Italian territory, is also allowed to subjects in possession of one of the COVID-19 green certificates for vaccination , healing or test, so-called basic Green Pass.
3. Starting from February 1, 2022, the basic Green Pass is sufficient for travel in the European Union; in case of antigenic swab, the duration of the negative test result is decreased from 48 to 24 hours.
4. From January 10, 2022, the Super Green Pass is mandatory on all italian public transport (not on taxi), i.e. the enhanced Green Certification, for which the negative result of the swab is no longer valid, but only the vaccine or the cure, as per Law Decree 30 December 2021, n. 229. For returning in Italy from a European country, those who do not have a valid green pass for vaccination or recovery are required to undergo 5-day fiduciary isolation.
5. On all means of public transport (including ferries and hydrofoils), both local and medium and long distance, it is mandatory to wear an FFP2 mask, which has a higher degree of protection. The decree law issued is effective from 25 December 2021 to 31 March 2022.
6. To enter Italy, for those who have stayed or transited, in the previous fourteen days, in one or more states of the European Union and have the digital COVID certificate, from 15 December 2021, at the time of boarding it is also mandatory to present the certification of having undergone a molecular test in the previous 48 hours or an antigen test in the previous 24 hours, carried out with a swab and negative results. To enter Italy, as well as other EU Member States, to those who have the COVID-19 green certification from a swab, i.e. are not vaccinated or cured, the measure of fiduciary isolation is applied for five days at the address indicated in the Passenger Locator Form (see below how it must be completed), with the obligation to repeat the test at the end of this period.
7. Following the issuance of the decree of 26 November 2021, n. 172 (Urgent measures for the containment of the COVID-19 epidemic and for the safe carrying out of economic and social activities) the Covid-19 Green Certification is mandatory on ships and ferries used for interregional (between different regions) italian transport services, but also on the means used in local or regional public transport services. Therefore, from 6 December 2021, the Green Pass is required on all routes.

National routes

To travel by ferry it was already mandatory, in all cases, to comply with the usual anti-contagion measures such as the use of a mask with nose and mouth cover, maintaining an interpersonal distance of at least one meter and frequent washing or sanitizing of the hands. As regards the regional routes, there are no other obligations. The Green Pass is mandatory only for long-distance maritime connections, and only until April 30th. The means used for maritime connections in the Strait of Messina and to and from the Tremiti Islands are also excluded from the obligation of green certification. As regards the national routes in Italy, these are the procedures and restrictions, provided that there are no changes in the epidemiological situation with regulatory repercussions and / or changes in the color of the regional areas.

Routes in the European Union

For maritime transport between states of the European Union it is essential to show the digital COVID certificate even if it is always advisable to check the measures in force in the specific country in which you are going. For this purpose, the traffic light system developed by the EU is very useful, accessible from the Re-open EU website, from which it is possible to view, by entering the place of departure and destination, information, obligations and travel advice updated every two weeks. For example, currently to enter Spain from Italy, by sea , each passenger (including minors) must complete a health check form before departure on the puertos.es website which, once signed online, will return a QR code. To go to Greece from Italy by ferry, however, you must fill out the Passenger Tracking Form (PLF) before departure. All additional procedures compared to the European COVID certificate. For Croatia it is recommended to fill in the form at the web address https://entercroatia.mup.hr/ before departure. To travel to France, there are currently no additional obligations to the European COVID certificate. It should be noted that between EU states there may be slight differences in the requirements for issuing the Green Pass: with a complete vaccination cycle there will certainly be no problems regarding the certificate.

Entry into Italy

To enter into Italy by ferry from countries belonging to the European Union, in addition of course to the enhanced Covid-19 green certification, the European Passenger Locator Form (dPLF) must be completed before departure, through the platform at the address https://app.euplf.eu/. As for ferry travel, this must be completed before boarding. In the case of entry into Italy, minors can be registered in the dPLF of the adult they travel with.

The information in this article may not be exhaustive or timely updated: for complete and accurate information on procedures and restrictions relating to Covid-19, also consult the official websites.