Member States’ ambassadors to the EU (Coreper) decided on Wednesday 29 July to remove Algeria from the list of non-Member States whose citizens may return to the EU for non-essential travel, two sources said.
The increase in infections in the country justified this withdrawal. Morocco was also subject to interrogations, but remains on the common list at this stage. The European list therefore now comprises only 12 countries following the withdrawal two weeks ago of Serbia and Montenegro (see EUROPE 12529/11). The written procedure to adopt this decision was launched on 29 July and will be confirmed on 30 July.
The current list therefore only includes these countries: Morocco, Tunisia, Thailand, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, Georgia, Japan, Rwanda, South Korea, Uruguay and China (subject to reciprocity).
The European list is updated every two weeks. The removal of Algeria was to be expected after France, for example, had reported in recent days that it intended to further restrict arrivals on its territory from that country.
The internal situation in the EU, with increases in cases in Belgium, Germany, France, and Romania, as well as encouraged quarantine measures between Member States (Belgium has identified areas in the EU for which isolation or even testing on return will be necessary), does not lend itself, for the time being, to extending this list of non-Member States either. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)