On 13 April 2021, a broad political majority entered into an agreement on how the gradual reopening of travelling into and out of Denmark will proceed. A regional model of travel restrictions is reintroduced, with automatic adjustments based on a number of factors, including notification rates, which means changes for both the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ travel advice, the entry restrictions and the requirements for testing and isolation after entry into Denmark. You can read the agreement on a gradual reopening of travel activities here (Danish).
In phase 1 of the reopening agreement from 21 April, the Danish model for travel restrictions for EU and Schengen countries will thus again be based on notification rates. If there are extensive entry restrictions for travellers from Denmark, this will affect the colours of the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ travel advice.
A new red risk assessment will be introduced to handle the occurrence of coronavirus variants of concern. You can get a comprehensive overview of the Danish regional model for travel restrictions for EU and Schengen countries as well as third countries in the fact sheet .
The colours in the model for the EU and Schengen countries are updated weekly on the basis of data on the latest notification rates from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and Statens Serum Institut. Each country’s entry restrictions for Danish travellers are also included in the assessment of the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ travel advice. Regional breakdowns are only done in the countries that report regional data to the ECDC.
Which countries and regions will become yellow and which red?
From 21 April, entry from the following countries/regions of the EU and Schengen countries will be opened: Iceland (the whole country), Norwegian regions: Nordland, Trøndelag, Troms and Finnmark.
It will be possible to enter into Denmark from these countries/regions from 21 April without any requirement for worthy purposes, just as travellers from these countries/regions will be exempted from the isolation requirement after entry.
However, as far as departure from Denmark is concerned, the above countries/regions will continue to be orange (all unnecessary travel is advised against) in the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ travel advice. This is due to significant entry restrictions in the above countries/regions for travellers from Denmark.
For countries outside the EU/Schengen, the travel restrictions are updated on the basis of the EU’s list of third countries for which reopening of travel activities may be considered because they meet established COVID-19 criteria for entry into the EU.
As a result of national reviews of the EU country list, travellers from the following third countries may enter into Denmark from 21 April: Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand.
However, all the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ travel advice on departures to these countries remain orange (all unnecessary travel is advised against), as the countries in question have imposed significant entry restrictions on Danish travellers. The travel advice will be adjusted in line with these countries easing their entry restrictions.
As something new, a red risk assessment has been incorporated in the model for countries with a particularly worrying infection development, including the development of COVID-19 variants of concern. The decision to categorise a country as red is made by an inter-ministerial task force based on a public health assessment from Statens Serum Institut. As a general rule, the red risk assessment is performed at national level. However, this may be deviated from in exceptional cases. From 21 April, the following countries will be red:
Bangladesh, Botswana, Brazil, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe, as well as the region of La Réunion, which is an overseas French territory off Southeast Africa.
All travel to red countries are advised against to limit the risk of bringing new coronavirus variants of concern into Denmark. The entry restrictions for the countries in question will follow the same approach that currently applies to South Africa, with a stricter list of worthy purposes for entry into Denmark.
All other countries will be orange.
Reopening phase 1
Phase 1 for the reopening of travelling will enter into force on 21 April (the night between Tuesday and Wednesday). For technical reasons, the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ travel advice and web pages will be updated during Wednesday 21 April.
Travel restrictions for EU and Schengen countries will be updated weekly in future.
Rules on entry into Denmark
There will still be requirements for testing and isolation after entry into Denmark. However, a number of different exemptions apply to the requirements, including special rules for the border regions, transport of goods, seafarers, transport staff, transit to Bornholm, travellers visiting their own remote holiday home in the Nordic region and business travellers. You can read more about the rules here.
From 21 April 2021, you will also be exempt from the requirement for isolation after entry into Denmark if you enter into Denmark from a yellow country/region. Details of the exemptions are found on www.coronasmitte.dk.
The list of worthy purposes for entry from orange countries/regions is extended.
If a country or region changes from yellow to orange while you are away, no isolation requirement will apply on your return unless you stay in the country for more than 15 days.
For press enquiries about travel advice, please contact the Press Office of the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs: pressevagten@um.dk.
For press enquiries about entry, please contact the Danish Ministry of Justice’s Press Office: jac@jm.dk.
Do you have any further questions?
