Case definition for COVID-19

COVID-19 is a disease under surveillance in the European Union (EU) and must be reported by all Member States. For EU surveillance purposes, a confirmed case is any person meeting at least one of the following laboratory criteria:

  • detection of SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid;
  • identification of SARS-CoV-2 r antigen in a clinical specimen (excluding self-tests performed outside healthcare settings);
  • or isolation of SARS-CoV-2 in a clinical specimen [1].
Page last updated 31 May 2023