The European Union recommends imposing restrictions on travelers from the United States

The European Union recommended on Monday to its 27 member countries that they reimpose restrictions on tourists from the United States due to the increase in coronavirus infections in that country.

The European Council removed the United States from its list of safe countries for non-essential travel, reversing the decision it had made in June, when it gave the go-ahead to allow the entry of American tourists during the summer season.

The decision is not binding, it does not oblige countries to follow the recommendation, so each government can decide whether to keep the borders open to those who come from the United States.

In this way, it is expected that there will be a series of diverse measures throughout the continent. 

[USA.

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Tourists enjoy a sunny day at Cala Tadira beach near Sant Josep de Sa Talaia on the Balearic island of Ibiza, Spain, on August 24, 2021. Jaime Reina / AFP via Getty Images

More than 15 million Americans a year were visiting Europe before the coronavirus crisis, and new travel restrictions could cost Europe billions of dollars.

A recommendation that does not include London

The recommendation does not apply to Britain, which formally left the EU at the beginning of the year and opened its borders to fully vaccinated travelers in early August. 

The United States is thus still on the UK's "amber" travel list, meaning that immunized adults do not have to quarantine.

A COVID-19 test is required three days before arriving in the UK and another test two days after arrival.

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What is the criteria to be on the list

The European Council updates the safe travel list every two weeks based on levels of coronavirus infection.

The threshold to be part of the payroll is not to have more than 75 new cases of COVID-19 per 100,000 inhabitants in the last 14 days.

Last week in the US, new cases of coronavirus exceeded an average of 152,000 a day with 100,000 hospitalizations in the country, figures that had not been registered since January.

There are also more than 1,200 deaths per day due to the coronavirus.

More than 77% of ICU beds are occupied by the coronavirus pandemic

Aug. 25, 202100: 19

United States, still with closed borders

Meanwhile, the United States has yet to reopen its own borders to tourists from the European Union, despite calls from the bloc for the Biden administration to lift its ban.

Adalbert Jahnz, home affairs spokesman for the European Commission, said on Monday that the EU executive arm was still in talks with the US administration as the two sides have so far failed to reach an agreement.

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The European Council said in this regard that "reciprocity [in the measures taken] must also be taken into account on a case-by-case basis."

With information from The Associated Press.