Warning about planning trips abroad: you thought a green passport was enough to travel, but you made a mistake

After receiving both doses of the vaccine, Carolina downloaded the European Union (EU) digital COVID certificate a few weeks later, facilitating travel between Community countries. Convinced that no further testing and self-isolation would be needed, the woman bought airline tickets to Denmark. The Lithuanian, who was preparing for the multi-day trip, said that even with a digital certificate, she felt anxious before the trip. Turns out, intuition didn’t fool her.

A Lithuanian who had to fly from Vilnius via Latvia to Denmark learned at Vilnius airport that everyone traveling to Latvia or transiting the country in any way must fill out a covidpass.lv traveler form at least 48 hours before crossing. the border of the Republic of Latvia. And save the QR code. Carolina did not have this code, but the airline staff omitted it and offered to fill out the required form while riding the bus to the aircraft. A few minutes later, the QR code was already on the woman’s phone.

The woman did not disclose this incident as the rest of the trip and stay in Denmark went smoothly. However, everything was turned upside down when Karolina was ready to fly back to Lithuania.

Many travelers are interested in what documents the country is going to plan when planning trips abroad during a pandemic, and do not even think about returning to Lithuania. This happened with Carolina, who was convinced that those who had a digital certificate did not need to fill out any additional documents.

However, all persons returning to or arriving in Lithuania must register and submit their details to the National Public Health Center (NVSC) electronically. This means that before starting a trip by plane, ferry, bus or train, individuals must complete a form on the NVSC website and present the registration confirmation received (QR code) at the time of boarding. It is recommended to complete the electronic form at least 24 hours before the start of the trip.

Carolina was asked for the QR code at Copenhagen airport at the boarding gate, but she did not have it, so Ryanair airline staff refused to let her get on the plane. The woman asked staff to help her find the required questionnaire, but after receiving a negative response, she rushed to search for the questionnaire online herself. During the rush, the disturbed woman did not fill out the Lithuanian form, but finally found the necessary questionnaire and the boarding gate was closed just before her nose. Lithuania begged the airline staff to allow her to fill out the questionnaire on the plane or wait less than a minute, but the staff were not friendly and did not allow the woman to get on board.

“I have never encountered such behavior from airline staff. How many flights, delays, airport tours have you always been waiting for. This time, when I was not late, I was there, refusing to help myself. Yes, it is my fault that I did not know the need to fill out this form, but no one has revoked humanity. In this story, the disgusting behavior of the employee hurt me the most, ”said Karolina.

When a woman cried at a closed door, a Ryanair employee who approached her offered to buy a ticket for another airline flight. “When I received such an offer, I thought they were making fun of me. Here, he closed the door in front of their faces and kept trying to make fun of himself by offering a flight the next morning, ”the woman resented.

The woman, who was in a hurry to get home, bought a flight from other airlines to Vilnius for 300 euros and a few hours later she was already on the plane: No one demanded it even after landing in Lithuania. However, I hope my story is a lesson for other Lithuanians and they will not get into such unpleasant situations. “

Delphi Remember that the NVSC is only responsible for performing random checks on passengers arriving on non-charter flights, so that passengers on each plane are not checked. Carriers are required to ensure that all passengers provide confirmation of a completed electronic questionnaire to collect passenger information for public health purposes prior to entering the vehicle (QR code).

The decision to carry out random controls on passengers was made taking into account the capacity required for the control and the fact that each passenger who gets on a plane or other vehicle is controlled by the carriers themselves, so only secondary controls are carried out at Lithuanian airports. Municipalities and the police are also tasked with controlling isolated travelers.