Passengers at Seattle-Tacoma Airport, Washington. | Reuters/Lindsey Wasson

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The European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, has confirmed that the EU will issue a recommendation that member states allow American tourists to enter if they’ve had both doses of the coronavirus vaccine.

The announcement, which was published in The New York Times, marks the end to more than a year of EU restrictions on non-essential travel for Americans.

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'From what I can see Americans use vaccines approved by the European Medicines Agency and this will allow them free movement and travel to the European Union,” said Von der Leyen. "One thing that is clear is that all 27 member states will unconditionally accept all those who have been immunised with vaccines approved by the European Medicines Agency," which includes Moderna, Pfizer/BioNTech and Johnson & Johnson.

No specific date has been confirmed for US Nationals to enter EU countries, but Von der Leyen has her eye on the summer season, because of the high rate of vaccination in America and the progress of vaccination certification talks.

The European Commission has recommended the change in travel policy, but individual member states could still reserve the right to maintain stricter limits and refuse entry to citizens from outside the EU, even if they have vaccination permits.