What is the PLF (Passenger Locator Form) and when is it required

Over the past few days, one news story has held headlines on the web and in the news: tourists heading to Greece for the vacations, but stuck at the airport because of a "technicality." No, we are not talking about the Green Pass. We know that one by now: everyone knows that without a certificate of vaccination or recovery, or without a recent negative swab, you cannot leave the country. Let's talk instead about the PLF, the Passenger Locator Form.

What is the Passenger Locator Form?

The Passenger Locator Form is a form that is used by local health authorities to tracking travelers, in case they have been in contact with a Covid-19 positive. With the information contained, contacting a traveler becomes easier. Thus, stopping the chain of contagions creates less difficulty.

What should be included in the PLF?

• Transportation and travel information
• personal data
• contact
• address of residence/domicile
• previous accommodation
• temporary address
• companion information
• emergency contact

One has to fill out the Passenger Locator Form before boarding a cruise ship, plane, ferry, train, bus or before a car trip. You cannot do it whenever you want, however, but there is a timing well-defined:

• After check-in and before boarding if traveling by air.
• Before boarding if taking the ferry
• Before disembarkation if you are on a cruise
• Before boarding the train or bus, or before crossing the border in the case of travel by car

For which countries the PLF is mandatory

The only two countries to use the PLF developed by the European Union are theItaly e Malta (just log on to the appropriate site and follow the instructions).

However, several other countries have developed their own PLF:

• Belgium
• Croatia
• Cyprus
• Czech Republic
• Estonia
• Germany
• Greece
• Ireland
• Latvia
• Lithuania
• Portugal
• Slovakia
• Spain
• Great Britain

Filling it out is very simple: you register, enter the required data, submit the Passenger Locator Form, and receive a QR code To be shown upon arrival in the country of destination.

What happens if you travel to multiple countries that each require a PLF? It depends on the means of transportation. If you travel by car, you will need to fill out the form before you cross each border. If you travel by multiple means, you will need to fill out the form each time you board a new vehicle. On the other hand, if you travel by air, and you have a stopover, you will have to fill out the PLF of the country of destination (the same rule applies to cruises: the PLF is that of the country where you disembark).

Here, then, by arming yourself with a little patience and getting properly informed, inconveniences can be avoided. And you don't risk getting stuck at the airport, or at a border, just because of some data not entered or some X's not put in.

• plf