Countries Which Accept India’s Covid Vaccine Certificate

Indians who have been worried about their future plans to travel to other countries can finally breathe a sigh of relief. Many countries are now accepting India’s Covid vaccine certificate into their borders even for non-essential travel.

Read on to know which countries are accepting travelers with Indian vaccines: -

• Europe

Around, 15 countries in the EU have confirmed that they will permit visitors inoculated with Covishield to travel to their countries. Switzerland, Iceland, Austria, Bulgaria, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Spain, France and Sweden are among the 15 European countries that have approved the Covishield vaccination.

While, Estonia has said it would recognize all the vaccines authorized by the Indian government, which would include Covaxin that has been developed by local firm Bharat Biotech.

What’s more? As per the latest reports, even Belgium’s government has decided to recognize the Covishield vaccine. The decision was recently announced by Belgium’s Minister of Development Cooperation.

• Maldives

The island country of Maldives had announced that it will open its borders to South Asian countries including India from 15 July.

According to the Maldives Ministry of Tourism (MoT), there is no mandatory quarantine on arrival for those showing no symptoms on arrival. However, all passengers, except one-year-old kids, will have to produce a negative RT-PCR before arrival for entry.

Also, people who have completed both the doses of Covid-19 vaccines (Covishield vaccine is approved by the Maldives government) will no longer require to undergo the mandatory travel quarantine protocol within the island. The second dose of the vaccine should be taken two weeks before traveling to Maldives.

That’s not all! Before traveling, one will have to fill the Health Declaration form on the Maldives immigration portal 24 hours before arrival.

• Canada

Indians will now be allowed to enter Canada. The country has so far approved the Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, Astra Zeneca/Covishield, and Johnson & Johnson vaccines. However, Canada has not approved Covaxin from Bharat Biotech and Sputnik V from the Russian Gamaleya Center.

Fully vaccinated individuals will be allowed to skip the mandatory three-day institutional isolation in Canada. Vaccination status will have to be uploaded on the Canadian government’s ‘ArriveCan’ app before reaching Canada.

• South Korea

In South Korea, Indian travelers don't need to quarantine themselves for two weeks if they have received both doses of the Covishield vaccine. However, those who have received Covaxin would need to quarantine themselves for two weeks as the Bharat Biotech vaccine is yet to get the World Health Organization (WHO) approval. 

• About Covaxin:

Covaxin, one of the COVID-19 vaccine in India, does not feature in the World Health Organisation's (WHO) Emergency Use Listing (EUL) for now. A number of countries are still to approve the vaccine as well. Thus, those vaccinated against COVID-19 by Covaxin might not be allowed to travel internationally till the time it gets approved; it is only approved by nine countries for now.

As per reports, at present Covaxin has been approved for use in nine countries — Iran, Philippines, Mauritius, Mexico, Nepal, Guyana, Paraguay, Zimbabwe, and India. So hopefully, these countries will soon accept travelers jabbed with Covaxin.

As of now, the impending approval by WHO might affect travel plans for a good number of Indians vaccinated by Covaxin. However, be rest assured that the Indian Government is trying its best that both Indian vaccines get accepted by maximum countries in the world.

Note: Though all the above countries are accepting Indian vaccines, travelers will still need to check country-specific guidelines before making travel plans.

Finally remember that, vaccination, even though helpful only offers a certain degree of protection. Reinfection is still a real possibility that hasn’t been ruled out yet. So even after getting vaccinated, you will have to avoid crowded places and maintain a 6 feet distance from people. Continue wearing a mask and follow basic hygiene to keep COVID-19 and related illnesses at bay.

Stay Home! Stay Safe! Stay Healthy!