Covid-19: Portugal does not officially recognize but accepts proof of vaccination from Brazil

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Although Portugal does not officially recognize the validity of the proof of vaccination against Covid-19 issued in Brazil, Brazilian tourists traveling to the country have been able to widely use the document issued by SUS (Single Health System) in access to restaurants, cultural events, and other activities in which proof of immunization is required.

Portugal does not require proof of vaccination to travel to the country. Still, since the beginning of December, proof of immunization is required in several situations, including visiting the inside areas of cafes and restaurants and entering cultural events, such as theaters and cinemas.

In addition to the European Union’s digital certificate – which attests complete immunization or recovery of the Covid-19 less than six months ago – Portugal also accepts proof of vaccination from countries that recognize the European document on a reciprocal basis.

As Brazil is not one of the countries whose certificates have reciprocity with the European Union, the SUS document is not considered valid proof of vaccination.

The only formal alternative, in these cases, would be the mandatory presence of a negative test for Covid-19: a more laborious option that may represent an additional expense for travelers.

With prices starting at EUR60, PCR-type tests are valid for 72 hours. Widely available in pharmacies, antigen tests cost about EUR30 (about R$190) and are valid for 48 hours.

There are free testing stations in some cities, such as Lisbon, but demand has outstripped supply, which has also grown among the country’s residents.

The government also offers the possibility to do a self-test of the antigen at the entrance of the establishments, found from EUR2.80 (R$ 17.80) in supermarkets. Several places, however, do not accept this method.

Although technically they always need to present negative tests for Covid, in practice, Brazilian tourists have been able to use the proof of vaccination from SUS without significant embarrassment.

This week, in the center of Lisbon, the report witnessed the acceptance of the Brazilian vaccination certificate in cafes and restaurants. There was also no difficulty using the Brazilian document in a giant Christmas fair set up in a city park.

When questioned, the people in charge did not want to make a statement. Informally, the owner of one of the restaurants in the Chiado area said that the testing requirement for Brazilian tourists would mean the loss of about 30% of the current customers.

On vacation with her husband in the Portuguese capital, retired Maria Angela Ribeiro says she hasn’t had any problems using her certificate. I have been to the mall, shopped, eaten out every day, always shown the vaccine from Brazil. People look to see if they have the two doses correctly, and that’s it. I didn’t even know it wasn’t valid here.”

Since Portugal reopened to tourists from Brazil in September, an average of 1,500 tourists arrive in the country every day.

Although tourism accounts for an essential slice of the Portuguese economy, entrepreneurs in the restaurant sector have complained about the lack of guidance from the government on how to deal with vaccination documents issued abroad.

“There has been additional pressure on a sector that is already being badly affected, with a reduction in people coming in-person to restaurants. In addition, we received no guidance on what to do with foreign vaccination certificates,” says Glauco Junqueira, owner of the restaurant A Coxinharia in Alcantara.

Besides Brazil, the United States, another important market for tourists from outside Europe, is also not part of countries with reciprocity of immunization certificates from Portugal.

General secretary of Ahresp (Association of Hotels, Restaurants and Similar Establishments of Portugal), Ana Jacinto, says that the entity has the principle of not criticizing the measures to combat the pandemic implemented by the government. Still, she says it is not possible to ignore the negative impact on sectors that depend on tourism. This whole process causes constraints in the operation of establishments,” he says.

At the moment, the European Commission already recognizes in reciprocity the vaccination certificates of 28 countries or territories outside the EU: Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Cape Verde, El Salvador, Faroe Islands, Georgia, Israel, Iceland, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, North Macedonia, Moldova, Monaco, Morocco, New Zealand, Norway, Panama, San Marino, Serbia, Singapore, Switzerland, Togo, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, and the Vatican.

Portugal and Brazil began negotiations for a bilateral agreement to validate vaccination certificates more than five months ago, but the process has not advanced.

With information from Folha