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Portugal/Spain Covid Planning

Hi RS Folks, I would appreciate a sounding-board. My college student is solo-traveling to Portugal and Spain this summer. I am checking their plans and country reqs, and want to make sure I have this right:

Covid Documents to fly to Portugal from US:
Vaccine card
Negative test (either PCR up 72 hours prior or Antigen up to 24 hours prior)
Passenger locator form (filled out no earlier than 96 hours prior)

Covid documents for travel to Spain (air):
Vaccine Card
Passenger locator form

Return to US through Portugal*:
Vaccine card
Another Passenger locator form

and...

*This is where things get sticky. Kiddo is flying RT to Portugal and flying to and from Spain from there. They fly back to Portugal from Spain the night before their flight to the US. So, they need a negative test for Portugal for flight that night, and for the US flight for the next day. But the one for Portugal cannot be a proctored Binax. I'm thinking they get an Antigen test at a pharmacy early on the morning they depart from Spain (I think their flight leaves at 9p), and that negative result serves them for the US flight the next day as well.
(I will send them with two home tests to monitor themselves during travel if they feel unwell. But other than that, I dont think a proctored test will help anything. They have travel insurance).

What am I missing?

Posted by
32 posts

I'm traveling to Spain, Italy and Portugal in May, we start in Spain so this would be a little different for your son. For Spain I had to download the app from the SPTH on my phone and fill out a form showing my upcoming travel, then 72 hours before my flight they send me an alert asking me for proof of vaccination (cdc card) after uploading a pic of it they send me a QR code that is the equivalent to EU Digital pass. So for Portugal just make sure you understand what you need to get a QR code from them and you should be fine to travel within the EU without having to verify your vaccination status every time you enter a new country. I could be wrong but this is my understanding of it after hours of trying to find any solid answers on what to do before you travel abroad.

Posted by
32 posts

So I just read the requirements for traveling to Portugal it sounds like all he needs is a negative test which is nice and easy but he will still need to download the SPTH app and fill out the form for non EU certified travelers then once he gets to Spain he can get a QR code that should be good through the rest of his travels. As for coming home he should be able to pick up a test even at the airport and if he's worried at all he should take a test a day for the last 4 days of travel that way if he tests positive he has time to plan.

Posted by
1895 posts

I downloaded the SpTH App and filled out the info, but when I tired to use it at the airport on arrival in Barcelona last October , it wouldn't work ! Thank goodness I did analog and printed out the forms to show. Talk about PANIC when I tired to open the App in line after arrival to get through the check point, and NOTHING... I always back up digital with printed...

Posted by
1230 posts

I always carry paper copies of the things I also have in digital form. Im telling the kid they should do that ;)