Madeira Covid testing information, not everyone receives a free test

Thanks to Eileen who sent me this message below. So if you have two vaccines you can just enter Madeira, but the Madeira Safe app does not register this, and so you cannot get a free PCR test on your return. I’m looking into this more.

We arrived in Madeira today, yipee!  I thought I would let you know that  NOT EVERY VISITOR CAN HAVE A FREE PCR TEST.
My vaccination status was validated on arrival.  Tried to book a free test on the app and it said “only visitors who have tested Covid 19 in their country of origin are eligible” .  I was standing at the counter with the nurse who was taking all the details of our vaccination status and asked her.  She didn’t seem to know anything about it.
Those who have not been tested or vaccinated get a free test on arrival.  You only get a free test for departure if you arrived in Madeira with proof of a negative pcr test taken before flying.
We now need to get a test ourselves, and as it can be a lateral flow test we will pay 15€ each in Funchal before we leave.
I hope you might put something on your blog… there are a lot of very confused people out there.

We came with easyJet from Bristol. We have both had 2 vaccinations, so knew we didnt need to be tested on arrival.  It is the Madeira travel app that requres a negative test result to let you book a free test for departure.  The procedure at the airport was good, ecpxcept for the nurse who did not know how we could book the test for departure.

Thanks to Steve also for this information. 

I have commented on your blogs regarding to test or not to test but thought I’d send this to you direct rather than carry on the comments as the thread is getting a bit long. Just sent this via messenger but have found you email address

I am an avid reader of you blogs and have been for years and am very interested in the blogs and comments regarding testing requirements flying into and out of Madeira especially as we are due to fly on the 17th June. It seems to me that it’s the check-in staff who decide if you can get on the plane or not, so forgetting about the legalities and justification for commercial companies to act as border control for the country you are flying to, it would be interesting to hear from someone who checks us in at the airport both in UK and RAM.

My story:-

We visit the beautiful island of Madeira two or three times a year and we were planning to retire there in 2020 that was until the pandemic hit and then Brexit (not going down that road but it has really messed up our retirement plans!)

We booked our flights for June 2020 with EasyJet as soon as they come out, accommodation booked for three weeks, don’t know why we did not make it four weeks and got a discount probably the cost of flights. Then the pandemic hit so not knowing what the situation was going to be in June 2020 I paid to move our flights to June 2021. This was before we got wise to flight cancelations and EasyJet terms and conditions, we now have two golden tickets one to Madeira/ Portugal and one to Lanzarote or anywhere in Spain (did anybody else bag a golden ticket by booking or moving flights to just before a lockdown period).

With over a year to go so no worries job done, not knowing that we were going to live in interesting times for the next year. We had six flights booked with EasyJet and spent the year moving them from date to date only cancelled one so three flights moved/booked and two golden tickets to decide when to go, incidentally with EasyJet you have a year to choose another flight or get a refund from the date of the cancelation email.

To the present, three weeks to go and we were hoping things would have settled down by now but there are still issues regarding “getting on the plane”. We are both double vaccinated and have our vaccine status certificates printed and uploaded to the Madeira safe app, keeping an eye on Tobi’s blogs and comments in the hope that someone will confirm that you can get on a plane bound for Madeira with a Vaccination certificate. Incidentally my certificate is valid until the 20th June I assume that’s because of the road map and everything will open up after the 21st June, anyone else noticed that on their certificate. BTW from what I gather the Madeira safe app will say “waiting for validation” until you get to Madeira so take a printed copy with you. Also you can only book your return “fit to fly” return test in Madeira on the app after you have arrived in Madeira. Getting a day 2 test seems to be a problem but from what I have read all you need is the reference number of your booked test for your UK passenger locator form which they will need at the check-in desk at Funchal Airport. As we are traveling back in July it may be different then so I’ll wait and see what the situation is then.

Points of note:-

EasyJet travel hub says you don’t need a negative test if you have a vaccination certificate for Madeira but you do need a negative test for Portugal so it’s contradiction. Despite anything else it will be down to the person at check-in who decides if you can fly or not so we will be armed with a printout of our vaccination status, the FCO travel advice for Madeira and a printout from EasyJets travel hub. One of the issues I can see here is if the plane can’t land at Madeira or Porto Santo and diverts to mainland Portugal as long as you don’t disembark you should be OK but what happens if you do. We were on an EasyJet flight that turned around and went back to Bristol because it could not land and Porto Santa airport had no space left, we were over Lisbon at the time but it still went back to Bristol.

What will happen after the 21st June? We fly back on the 8th July so no idea what the requirements will be then but as our vaccination status expires on the 20th June are we to assume that everything will be back to normal after the 21st!

Can’t wait to get back to beautiful Madeira Island, we may still look at moving but we will have to do it on a D7 visa now otherwise its 90 days at a time.

I will just add also to note that easyjet updated their website with info entering Madeira, and noting it’s different from Portugal. Also you can get Antigen tests for 15 euros, and I think all flights to the UK should accept this as a PCR Test is not needed to enter the UK on the green travel list, you only need to book and pay for a PCR Test for day two after your arrival.

If anyone has any other information to add please do so below in the comments.