The Italian government plans to gradually ease the remaining restrictions related to COVID-19 from April 1.

Italian authorities had scheduled a meeting for today, where they are expected to decide which measures will be lifted, and then they will issue an official statement tomorrow, March 17, reports SchengenVisaInfo.com.

The government had previously announced that the state of emergency would end on March 31, meaning all regions would be whitelisted.

Therefore, since no area is considered to be heavily affected by the virus, from April 1 the government plans to remove the requirement to present a Green Pass – a vaccination, recovery or test certificate. – when visiting various places and outdoor public places. , such as cafes and restaurants.

Moreover, as the country tries to revive its tourism sector, it is expected that the pass requirement will also be removed for access to accommodation facilities, museums and other cultural activities.

Other measures, such as the requirement to hold a valid pass to attend indoor public places, are also to be scrapped later in April.

Commenting on the new developments, Italian Deputy Health Minister Andrea Costa said the measures would be dropped for the majority of locations. Furthermore, he revealed that the country plans to remove all of its restrictions by the summer.

Unlike Italy, several European countries have already lifted their national COVID-19 restrictions. Austrian authorities announced earlier this month that they would no longer require travelers and citizens of the country to observe the health pass requirement when entering restaurants, all types of accommodation, cafes, cultural institutions and recreation centres.

Similarly, France has also dropped the health pass requirement. Since March 14, all people have been subject to less strict national restrictions.

Even though Italy continues to keep specific restrictions in place, the country has already relaxed its entry rules for travellers. All incoming travellers, whether from an EU country or a non-EU country, can now enter Italy without having to follow additional entry rules provided they present a valid vaccination, recovery or test certificate.

A vaccination card is considered valid upon arrival in Italy if the document proves that the holder has carried out the primary vaccination within the last nine months. In contrast, recovery certificates are only valid for six months.

>> Traveling to Italy this spring: Vaccinations, tests and other entry rules explained