From July 1, 2021, Germany will redesign the previous system of travel warnings. In future, tourist travel will no longer be generally advised against, but the “deterrent” warning will only be issued when the seven-day incidence is over 200.

Germany's federal government is currently issuing travel warnings with a seven-day incidence of 50 or more, although it is occasionally necessary to take a lot of time with the lifting. Most recently, all of Austria was removed from the “red list”.

Areas and states that are defined by the state Robert Koch Institute as so-called virus variant areas are not affected by the change. A travel warning is issued for them even if the seven-day incidence is below 200 per 100.000 inhabitants.

Ultimately, the change has consequences for both travel insurance holders and package travelers: Many insurance companies do not grant cover if the German government has issued a travel warning for the destination country. As a result of the change, there will no longer be any for around 100 countries, which is why insurance companies can no longer invoke this reason for exclusion.

In the case of package travelers, the consequence is rather uncomfortable, because if a travel warning is given, travelers can usually withdraw from their booking free of charge. The discontinuation of the government measure means that short-term cancellations based on the travel warning will no longer be possible free of charge, as there will no longer be any for many countries from July 1, 2021.