Good News From Ireland

Tourism Ireland is welcoming the news of the lifting of additional pre-testing requirements for travel to the island of Ireland.

For visitors arriving into the Republic of Ireland from Thurs., Jan. 6, vaccinated people with a valid Digital COVID Certificate or another valid proof of recent infection or vaccination will not need a test.

Unvaccinated people will need a “not detected” PCR test result taken within 72 hours of their arrival into Ireland.

These new regulations are effective immediately for the Republic of Ireland:

• Vaccinated or recovered travellers into Ireland will be required to present evidence of a valid Digital COVID Certificate or other acceptable proof of vaccination/previous infection prior to travel.
• Travellers who are not vaccinated or recovered will be required to present evidence of a not-detected RT-PCR test carried out no more than 72 hours before their arrival into Ireland.

Fully vaccinated travellers arriving into Northern Ireland after 4am on Fri., Jan. 7 need not present a pre-departure test certificate to the airline or ferry company.

They will still need to present a passenger locator form. In order to complete this, the traveller must book a post-arrival (day two) test. Self-isolation will no longer be required while waiting for a negative result.

From 4 am on Sun., Jan. 9, fully vaccinated travellers may take a faster, cheaper lateral flow test rather than a PCR, to be taken on the day of arrival or one of the two following days.

Commenting on the changes, Sandra Moffatt, Manager, Tourism Ireland, Canada said: “Tourism Ireland very much welcomes the news that visitors will no longer be required to take a pre-travel COVID test before entry to the island of Ireland. This will boost visitor confidence when planning their holiday.”

Moffatt continued: “The health and safety of all our visitors continues to be the priority, and we will ensure they are protected alongside a very warm Irish welcome and a great holiday experience.”

And she added: “Our message – and that of the entire Irish tourism industry – is very simple: we cannot wait to roll out the green carpet and welcome back visitors from Canada and elsewhere around the world.”