The August 4, 2021, Circular of the Italian Ministry of Health provides that Italian citizens (including residents abroad) and their cohabiting family members, regardless of whether enrolled in the National Health Service or SASN (Health Care for Air and Sea crews), as well as all subjects enrolled in any capacity in the National Health Service who have been vaccinated abroad against SARS-CoV-2 or who have recovered abroad from COVID-19, will be able to request – if they are already on Italian territory – the issuance of COVID-19 Green Certificates envisaged for vaccination or recovery. Said certificates are issued by the National DGC Platform in accordance with criteria set out by law, and may be obtained through local health authorities of territorial competence, in compliance with procedures established by Regions and Autonomous Provinces, and upon presentation of an acceptable form of identification, a codice fiscale if applicable (tax code, equivalent to US SSN), as well as the following documentation, depending on the type of Covid-19 Green Certificate which is required:
a) a certificate of vaccination issued by the foreign health authority that sets out at least the following contents:
– identification data of the holder (name, last name, date of birth);
– data relating to the vaccine(s) (name and lot);
– date(s) of vaccine(s) administration;
– identification data of the person who issued the certificate (State, Health Authority).
Only the following vaccines approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the Italian Medicines Agency (AIFA) are currently valid for the issuance of the COVID-19 Green Certificate:
– Comirnaty (PfizerBioNtech);
Spikevax (Modern);
– Vaxzevria (AstraZeneca);
– COVID-19 Vaccine Janssen (Janssen-Johnson & Johnson).
(b) certificate of recovery issued by the foreign health authority that sets out at least the following content:
– identification data of the holder (name, surname, date of birth);
– information about the holder’s previous SARS-CoV-2 infection following a positive test (date of first positive molecular swab);
– identification data of the person who issued the certificate (State, Health Authority).
The certificates referred to in letters a) and b), in paper and/or digital format, must be prepared at least in English and, for the Autonomous Province of Bolzano, in English or German; other languages must be accompanied by a sworn translation.
In the event of request for issuance of a Covid-19 Green Certificate following the completion, after recovery from COVID-19, of the vaccine cycle with one single dose, applicants must submit both certificates referred to in paragraphs a) and b).
In the event that only a first (of a multi-dose vaccination cycle) dose of vaccine has been administered abroad, the COVID-19 Green Certificate pertaining to the first dose may only be requested if the validity limits for the maximum time for administering the second dose of that vaccine (currently 42 days for mRNA vaccines and 84 days for Vaxzevria) have not expired; in any event, applicants must be guaranteed administration of the dose for completion of the vaccination cycle.
The documentation submitted by applicants may solely be validated, to verify compliance with the requirements listed above, by medical personnel.
For further details, please refer to the full text of the circular, available here.
