Travelling limitation in Italy accordingly with the new Prime Minister’s Decree enacted on 24 October 2020

published on 3 November 2020 | reading time approx. 6 minutes

On 24 October 2020, in order to fight against the epidemiological emergency due to the virus COVID-19, the Italian Prime Minister has enacted a new Decree (DPCM) establishing measures aimed to contain and fight the spread of the virus infection.

The relevant decree has been published alongside of further measures issued in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and it sets forth, among other things, specific provisions that regulate, limit and in some cases prohibit the possibility of entering and moving within the national territory as well as of travelling abroad.
 
Relating to transnational travels, the decree has split the countries of the world within six groups (referred to with letters from A to E) which are listed in Annex 20 attached to the Prime Minister's Decree and indicated below for the convenient peruse of this document:
 

List A:

Republic of San Marino, Vatican City State;
 

List B:

Austria, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Croatia, Denmark (including the Faroe Islands and Greenland), Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Portugal (including the Azores and Madeira), Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Hungary, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway (including Svalbard and Jan Mayen islands), Switzerland, Andorra, Principality of Monaco;
 

List C:

Belgium, France (including Guadeloupe, Martinique, Guyana, Réunion, Mayotte and excluding other territories located outside the European continent), the Netherlands (excluding territories located outside the European continent), Czech Republic, Spain (including territories on the continent African), United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (including Channel Islands, Gibraltar, Isle of Man and British bases on the island of Cyprus and excluding territories outside the European continent);
 

List D:

Australia, Canada, Georgia, Japan, New Zealand, Romania, Rwanda, Republic of Korea, Thailand, Tunisia, Uruguay;
 

List E:

All states and territories not expressly indicated in another list;
 

List F:

Effective 9 July 2020: Armenia, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bosnia Herzegovina, Brazil, Chile, Kuwait, North Macedonia, Moldova, Oman, Panama, Peru, Dominican Republic.
 
As of 16 July 2020: Kosovo, Montenegro;
 
As of 13 August 2020: Colombia.
 
Once the countries have been listed, the DPCM sets forth a general ban on entering into Italian territory and traveling to states and territories not expressly mentioned in Annex 20 (List E).
 
Furthermore, article 4 of the Prime Ministerial Decree establishes a prohibition on entering and moving within the national territory for persons who have traveled through or stayed during a fourteen-day before period they arrived in Italy in one of the states indicated in the List E.
 
In addition, the decree also establishes a general ban on travel to all countries indicated under the List F.
 
The aforementioned limitations do not apply in the cases where the moving is grounded on: work needs, absolute urgency, health or study reasons, returning to home, domicile or residence and, furthermore, in the cases in which the arrival into the Italian territory concerns:

1. citizens (and their family members or relatives) of a Member States of the European Union, of States party to the Schengen Agreement, of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland, of Andorra, of the Principality of Monaco, of the Republic of San Marino, of the Vatican City State; or
2. citizens (and their relatives or relatives) of third countries residing for a long time in the Italian territory or granted with the right of residing in Italy under European and/or national provisions.

The prohibitions introduced by the Prime Minister’s Decree also apply to the cases where the arrival and the transit in the national territory refer to persons who have traveled through or stayed during a fourteen-day period before they arrived in Italy in one of the states indicated under List F.
 
However, in the latter cases, the exemption above mentioned do not apply since specific applicable provisions are set forth for allowing the entry and transit of:

1. citizens (and their family members or relatives) of a Member States of the European Union, of States party to the Schengen Agreement, of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland, of Andorra, of the Principality of Monaco, of the Republic of San Marino, of the Vatican City State;
2. citizens (and their family members or relatives) of third States residing for a long time in the Italian territory or granted with the right of residing in Italy under European or national provisions who also have a registered residence in Italy starting from before the date indicated in the List F (in this case it is necessary that they declare that they have undergone, in the 72 hours prior to entry into the national territory, a test carried out with a swab with negative results;
3. crew and traveling personnel working for the transport companies;
4. officials and agents of the European Union or international organizations, diplomatic agents, staff of diplomatic missions, consular officers and employees, military and police personnel, as well as personnel of the Information System for the security of the Republic and of the police fire, in the performance of his duties.

As said above, the DPCM introduces a specific regulation for the entrance and exit from the national territory on the side of a series of duties and measures to contain the spread of the virus infection.
 
Among others, section 5 of the Prime Minister's Decree, with the aim to empower people who move in the pandemic scenario as well as ensuring the traceability of any subjects ascertained as positive to the virus, introduces some “statement obligations” that must be fulfilled by the people who entry the national territory from abroad.
 
Namely, with reference to the countries indicated in the Lists B, C, D, E, and F, the DPCM expressly provides, for persons who travel to Italy, the burden of delivering to the conveyor – upon boarding or whoever is appointed to carry out such checks – a clear and detailed statement on:

1. foreign countries and territories in which the person stayed or traveled through during a fourteen-day period before they arrived in Italy;
2. reasons for the movement (in the case of entry from States and territories referred to in lists E and F).

Wherever during the fourteen-day period the person entering in Italy has stayed or traveled through even one of the countries and territories referred to in Lists D, E, and F, the statement must also indicate:

1. the full address of the home or of the residing place in Italy (where the period of health surveillance and fiduciary isolation will be carried out);
2. the private means of transport that will be used to reach that place or the identification code of the ticket and the indication of the additional flight that will be used to reach the destination (this second hypothesis applies only in the event that the entrance in Italy occurs by air transport);
3. the telephone number for communications during the entire period of health surveillance and fiduciary isolation;
4. if any of the circumstances of the exemption set forth for the measures of the health surveillance and fiduciary isolation.

Under this point, it is worth mentioning that section 6 of the Prime Minister’s Decree establishes provisions governing the obligations that persons entering the Italian territory must fulfill as well as the circumstances of exemption from them.
 
Specifically, the decree set forth that persons who during the fourteen-day period before their entrance in Italy have stayed or traveled through States or territories indicated in Lists D, E, and F – even if asymptomatic – have to:

1. use only a private means to travel from the place of entrance in the national territory to the home or residing place where the period of health surveillance and fiduciary isolation is planned;
2. undergo health surveillance and fiduciary isolation for a fourteen-day period at the house or residing place above indicated.

In case of entrance into the national territory by air transport, it is exceptionally allowed to continue the travel to the final destination by other air transport, provided that the relevant person does not leave the areas specifically identified within the airports.
 
In addition, in case of residence or travel through countries and territories indicated in the List C, the Prime Minister’s Decree sets forth that the relevant person may, alternatively:

1. hand-deliver – to the conveyor at the time of embarkation and/or to whoever is appointed to carry out the checks – the statement confirming that they have undergone, in the 72 hours preceding the entrance in Italy, a test (molecular or antigenic ) carried out by means of a swab with a negative result; or
2. undergo a test (molecular or antigenic) carried out by means of a swab, upon arrival at the airport, port, or border place (where possible) or within 48 hours after the entrance in the national territory attending the local National Health Service (NHS). In this latter case, the person who entered Italy is subjected to fiduciary isolation.

Conclusively, it is worth mentioning that the Prime Minister’s Decree has established further cases of exemption from the provisions described above.
 
Accordingly, this exemption the obligations and restrictions introduced by the decree may be differently or even partially, enforceable depending on: the reasons for entering or traveling through in the national territory, the role and/or office of the person concerned, the country from where the person arrives and/or the duration of the stay in Italy.