Member States officials have accepted the recommendation in respect of the technical requirements and specifications for the imposing of a Digital Green Certificate, following the European Commission’s legislative proposal approved on 17th March.
In a press post provided by the European Commission, it was stated that it is a necessary move for the establishment of the required infrastructure all over the European Union countries, which would grant free movement of citizens in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Today is a key milestone for setting up the Digital Green Certificate’s infrastructure at EU level. These guidelines, adopted unanimously by national experts, show Member States’ commitment and readiness and will provide them with the specifications necessary for a quick implementation,” Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton stated.
Besides, it was identified that it is of major value to accommodate the work on the technical application by the side of the ongoing judicial procedure in order to ensure that the Digital Green Certificates will be carried out across the EU by June 2021.
The Commission disclosed that the agreed technical specifications cover data structure and encoding mechanisms, including a QR code that will make sure that all certificates, regardless on paper or in digital form, can be verified all over the EU.
Also, the instructions build-up by the Commission will also permit sharing key features of the electronic signature so that the Digital Green Certificates’ authenticity can be confirmed speedily and more correctly.
Moreover, the individual data of the certificate bearer will not undergo the gateway since they do not require to be confirmed, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
Additionally, the instructions outline recommendation implementations for software in order to issue Digital Green Certificates. The references are as follows:
- To verify the certificates a reference app used
- A template for a wallet app for citizens to be able to store them
The Member States will be in charge of setting up the systems at the national level. However, the reference implementations, which will be free to access and available by the second half of May, will assist to expedite the implementation.
“Digital Green Certificates are crucial to assist the Member States in the fight against the pandemic while allowing citizens to exercise their free movement rights in a coordinated and safe manner,” Commissioner for Health and Food Safety Stella Kyriakides stated.
Setting up the national infrastructure is the next step regarding the technical specifications
The next move concerning the technical specifications is launching national solutions for issuing, verifying, and storing the Digital Green Certificates, and establishing the EU gateway.
Later the piloting phase that is to take place in May, the EU gateway looks to be prepared in June for the Member States to join. A remarkable number of Member States have so far shown attentiveness in taking part in the pilot program.
The Commission will produce financial and technical assistance to all Member States that are to join the gateway.
Formerly, in order to empower free and safe movement in the bloc the Council of the European Union agreed to establish the Digital Green Certificate proposed by the EU Commission.