Malta has herd immunity

According to the Maltese government, Malta has become the first country in the European Union to achieve herd immunity of its population in the COVID-19 pandemic. It is using this status to open to international tourism, health and medical travellers.

Herd immunity within the population in Malta was achieved for the first time with over 70% of the population vaccinated. 42% of the population also now have full vaccination protection after having the second dose.

According to the John Hopkins Bloomberg School, herd immunity is when most of a population is immune to an infectious disease. This provides indirect protection, or population immunity (also called herd immunity or herd protection), to those who are not immune to the disease.

According to Malta Tourism authorities, the “Sunny and Safe” COVID-19 measures continue to be strictly controlled using safety protocols on hygiene and distance.Malta’s rules for entry include different requirements from passengers coming from countries classified as Green, Amber, and Red.

  • Green countries only have a form to fill out
  • Amber countries have the form and a 72-hour PCR test
  • Red countries are restricted to returning residents only.

Malta allows fully vaccinated passengers from Amber countries to enter without PCR testing. Fully vaccinated means at least 14 days have elapsed since the final dose of vaccine brands approved by the EU commission.

Three key sources of health tourists, and to a much lesser extent medical travellers, are France, Italy and the UK.

The current long list of Amber countries includes all three, and UK customers are not yet allowed to leave the UK for Malta.