The Republic of Latvia has successfully joined the European COVID Digital Certificate gateway, which will further ensure the exchange of data with the member states of the European Union (EU) on the information included in Digital Certificates, according to the National Health Service.
Data exchange enables residents of Latvia from now on to use their Digital Certificates when traveling to other EU member states. The Certificate is a confirmation that the resident has been vaccinated against Covid-19, done the COVID-19 test or has been previously infected, and this information in another participating country can be verified by scanning the QR code. At the same time, the connection to the gateway also allows checking the Certificates of EU residents entering Latvia.
The Republic of Latvia is one of the first countries to join the COVID Certificate gateway. Currently, the exchange is taking place with those EU member states that have already joined the gateway, namely, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Lithuania, Poland and Spain. Information about the countries that have joined the gateway is updated and published on the website of the European Commission.
The National Health Service gives notice that joining the gateway does not override the country’s entry conditions regarding the requirement to present a negative COVID-19 test result, self-isolation requirements for those who have not been vaccinated, etc. In accordance with the current legal regulation, the exception is residents with certificates confirming that they have come through the Covid-19 disease, who, entering Latvia, may not present or do the laboratory test for the determination of Covid-19. Residents are asked to keep track of changes in the legal regulation of travel requirements.
Before leaving for another EU member state, residents are asked by the National Health Service to contact the competent government authority of that country and find out when it will be possible to present and use their Digital Certificates in accordance with the current regulation in a particular country.
The joining of the Republic of Latvia to the gateway was previously planned for June 15. But thanks to the active work of the National Health Service, the successful implementation of the work plan and cooperation with the EU institutions that provided support for data integration, the joining to the gateway was made a week earlier. It is planned that from July 1, most of the member states will join the gateway of the European Union COVID Digital Certificate and gradually, during a six-week transition period, the rest of the countries will join.
Joining the single gateway enables the exchange of data on digital certificate signatures to verify the validity and authenticity of certificates. This means that all the information contained in Digital Certificates, e.g. the name of the vaccine taken, the date of birth of the resident, etc., will not be conveyed to the EU member states.
About 270 thousand Digital Certificates have been created on the website www.covid19sertifikats.lv to date, including more than 223 thousand certificates on COVID-19 vaccination, more than 28 thousand certificates on COVID-19 laboratory test results and more than 17 thousand certificates on disease recovery. The use of COVID-19 Digital Certificates began in since June 1 in Latvia. Residents can create their Digital Certificates at www.covid19sertifikats.lv. More information about the digital certificates is available on the website in the Questions and Answers section or by calling 8989.
Source:
Photo by National Health Service of Latvia
