On Thursday, the Commission also called for a list of countries whose borders could be opened from 1 July to be prepared in the meantime.

The spread of the coronavirus varies country by country, so the European Commission urges member states to decide together which third-country nationals to open their borders to and which not.

The inclusion of countries on one list or another should be based on the epidemiological situation in the country, the possibility of safe travel and whether that country admits EU citizens to its own country.

For those countries for which restrictions remain in force, the Commission recommends extending the types of passengers allowed, such as allowing the movement of students and highly qualified staff.

The Commission recommended a periodic review of the list of exempted countries in accordance with the criteria it has.

The entry ban could be lifted for countries with a coronavirus situation similar to the EU which has adequate infection control measures in place, the Commission said.

Example countries are for which restrictions could be lifted on July 1 are Albania, Kosovo, Bosnia, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia as "their epidemiological situation is similar to or better than in the EU", the Commission said.

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