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ARCHIVED - Clock starts ticking on Covid passport validity
Booster jabs must be administered within 9 months of second vaccine to ensure free travel within the EU
From Tuesday February 1, the original Covid passport will have a finite time stamp within the European Union and it will essentially expire for travel purposes nine months after a second vaccine is administered.
The moment someone in an EU member state receives their second jab – or the first, in the case of Janssen or for those who have recovered from Covid – the clock will start ticking, and the passport will lose its validity if the traveller doesn’t receive their booster vaccine within 270 days.
The change has already been implemented in Spain: from now, if a person has been triple jabbed, this information will automatically appear on their Covid passport when they download it from their regional Ministry of Health website.
With the sixth wave now accounting for almost half the total Covid infections in Spain since the pandemic began, the government has also decided that the period between second and third vaccines for those who have recovered from the virus will be extended from four weeks to five months.
The decision has been met with a mixed response. On the one hand, the experts are pleased with the extended time frame, since they maintain that a Covid infection and two vaccines provides more immunity than three doses without infection. On the opposite end of the argument are citizens who have actually had the disease; they are now worried that by waiting the recommended amount of time for their booster, their Covid passport will expire and they will not be allowed to travel freely within the EU.
To clarify the situation, the Minister of Health explained last week that the five month timeline was simply a “recommendation” and that people can choose themselves how early or late they want to receive their booster, depending on the dates of their Covid passport.
The EU has also recommended that the expiration date of the Covid passport be extended to uses other than travel, such as entry into bars and restaurants. However, given that several communities across Spain have already decided to scrap the document for use in leisure and entertainment venues, it remains to be seen if Spain will adopt this measure.
Read more: How to get a Covid passport
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