Important travel documents for your flight
Important travel documents for your flight

Important travel documents

for your flight

Anyone who wants to fly on holiday or business should prepare well for their trip in advance. Despite the removal of many restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, increased security requirements as well as control and verification obligations remain in place along the entire travel chain, which vary depending on the destination and can also change at short notice. It is therefore particularly important: 

  • to find out in good time about the entry requirements in force in the destination country, 
  • to check these again for any changes shortly before departure, and 
  • to have all the necessary travel documents ready at hand, either digitally or in print, at the airport and during the entire journey. 

Entry requirements by destination country

  • For flights within Germany, the 3G rule (vaccinated, recovered, tested) is not in place any longer. Only the personal travel documents must be carried. 
  • The entry requirements for flights abroad depend on the rules in the respective destination country. For many countries, in addition to personal travel documents, proof of vaccination, convalescence or testing as well as country-specific entry documents are required. Travellers can obtain specific information on the required documents from their respective airline, the respective tour operator or also on the respective country pages of the Federal Foreign Office.
  • People entering/returning to Germany from non-virus variant areas do not currently have to show “3G” proof (vaccinated, recovered or tested). All people entering/returning to Germany from virus variant areas must have the completed digital entry registration form (www.einreiseanmeldung.de) with them in addition to their personal travel documents. A current PoC/PCR test certificate (not older than 48 hours) is also required for travellers aged 12 and above. Quarantine rules apply.

Please note:

  • Since the incidence of infection is still dynamic, the RKI may classify areas as virus variant areas at short notice at any time. For this reason, passengers are required to check immediately before starting their return journey as to whether the countries in which they have stayed for the last 10 days before entering Germany have been declared virus variant areas.

Overview of travel documents

  1. Personal travel documents (identity card, passport, child ID, visa)
  2. 3G proof (vaccination, recovery or test certificate in digital form)
  3. Entry documents of the respective country of destination (digital entry application)

Personal travel documents include an identity card, passport and, in the case of children, a child’s identity card or, if applicable, a visa for the country of destination. Passengers can find out which documents are required on the website of the Federal Foreign Office. 

Proof of vaccination: 

  • Passengers should find out well in advance which vaccines are recognised in the respective destination country and whether additional proof of testing may be required. For travel within the EU, all vaccines approved by the EMA are generally recognised. However, passengers should also find out in advance whether double or triple vaccination or possibly additional proof is required. 
  • Upon re-entry to Germany, travellers are considered fully vaccinated if the last required vaccination was at least 14 days ago. The vaccination must be carried out with one or more vaccine(s) named by the Paul Ehrlich Institute. Proof of vaccination must be presented in embodied or digital form in German, English, French, Italian or Spanish. 

Proof of recovery: 

  • Travellers who have successfully overcome their COVID-19 infection are considered recovered and will be issued with a proof of recovery with limited validity. It varies somewhat as to when and for how long proof of recovery is recognised in the respective destination country. Passengers are therefore advised to inform themselves about the respective regulations. 
  • Travellers entering Germany are considered to have recovered if their COVID-19 infection occurred at least 28 days up to a maximum of 90 days ago. The test to prove recovery must be carried out as a laboratory diagnosis using nucleic acid detection (PCR, PoC-PCR or other methods of nucleic acid amplification technology). Proof of recovery must be submitted in embodied or digital form in English, French, German, Italian or Spanish.

Proof of negative test: 

  • Travellers without proof of recovery or vaccination must potentially present a current negative test result to the airline at check-in, depending on the applicable entry regulations. Whether PCR or antigen rapid test and with which validity depends on the respective entry regulations of the destination country. 
  • When (re)entering Germany from virus variant areas, the following tests are accepted as proof of testing:
    • PCR or PoC-PCR tests (not older than 48 hours before entry) are accepted as proof of testing. Persons who have not reached the age of 12 are exempt from the testing obligation.
    • Antigen tests as well as self-tests, i.e. quick tests that can be carried out independently at home, are not accepted.

  • Many countries usually require an entry declaration before (or occasionally at) entry. The country-specific forms are also known as Passenger Locator Forms. The forms vary depending on the destination country. Each country also has its own rules on who has to fill in the entry form (each person or only one member of the family). However, it is important that the forms are completed in good time and in full and that the confirmation of the entry application is printed out or carried digitally (depending on the destination country). 
  • The following applies to (re-)entry into Germany: Travellers who have stayed in a virus variant area up to ten days before entry must complete the entry registration (https://einreiseanmeldung.de/) of the Federal Republic of Germany. The passenger must carry a PDF confirmation of the entry registration. The airline is obliged to check this, and if it is not presented, the passenger will be refused carriage by the airline.

Further travel advice

Corona information

Flying safely under corona conditions

FAQ

Answers to frequent questions

Tips for the journey

Arrive in good time and find out in advance which terminal you are flying from

Security control

Support the process at the control points with these tips

Digital airport information

Here you will find help if something goes wrong on your journey.

On site, your central contact points are our airport information in our terminals.

You don't know what to do?

Here you will find support if things don't go as planned on your trip.

Contact us:

Further links:

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