COVID-19: Vaccine Passport Information 

Please do not contact your GP surgery about your COVID-19 vaccination status.
GPs cannot provide letters showing your COVID-19 vaccination status. 

There are two ways you can gain access to your COVID-19 vaccine passport: 

Via the NHS App:

If you have a smart phone or tablet, you can download the NHS app by clicking on either of the links below, or by searching "NHS App" in your app store. 

Apple app store logo     Google Play logo

Please note, this app is different to the NHS COVID-19 app.

Once you have downloaded the app, you will need to create an account. You can find help and information on what you need to do  here. 

To use the NHS App, you must: 

  • Be registered with a GP in England
  • Be over the age of 13 (if you are aged 13-15, you will need to contact your GP sugery to request GP online services access before you can use the app) 

We recommend that you download the app prior to booking your international holiday, and at least two weeks before your departure date. 

You need to of had both doses of the vaccine for the COVID-19 vaccine passport to work. 

Please click here for an easy read guide on how to download the NHS app. 

By calling 119: 

If you do not have access to a smart phone and you know the country you wish to travel to requires a vaccine passport on entry, you can call 119 (from 17th May onwards) and ask for them to send you a letter in the post.

This must be at least 5 working days after you have had your vaccine, and letters will take up to 5 working days to reach you. Make sure you leave yourself plenty of time to sort this if you are travelling abroad. 

Your letter will be sent to the address your GP has saved for you, the call handler will not be able to see your address to check this for you. If you have moved house, please update your GP with your new home address before calling 119. 

For more information about COVID-19 vaccine passports, please look at the government guidance here. 

 COVID-19 Vaccines Given Abroad 

If you have had your first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine abroad, it will not automatically show on the NHS app. 

Please provide your registered GP practice with a copy of your vaccination card and include: your name, date of birth, the brand (e.g. Pfizer), batch number of the vaccine and arm given. Your registered GP practice will then add this to your medical record. Once this is recorded in your records, you will be invited by text for your second dose within 12 weeks. You should receive the same vaccine for your second dose; if the vaccine you received is not available in the UK, the most similar alternative will be offered. Please note: the UK has approved the following vaccines: Pfizer BioNTech, AstraZeneca and Moderna.

A new service has been launched that enables patients 18yrs+ to book an appointment at a designed vaccination site to show evidence of any COVID-19 doses administered outside of England – this enables your medical records to be updated and your vaccination doses to show on the NHS App, there is more information on the NHS website. PLEASE NOTE: there are currently a limited number of vaccination sites offering these appointments and you may be directed to a site 100 miles+ away. More appointments will become available over time.

COVID-19 Vaccine Pass Letter for 12-15 year olds

COVID-19 vaccine pass letters are now available for 12-15 year olds. This will allow those children who have had both doses of an approved vaccine to travel to countries, including Spain and Canada, which now require 12 to 15 year olds to be fully vaccinated in order to gain entry, avoid isolation, or access venues or services.

Proof of vaccination will initially be provided via a letter service including an internationally recognised 2D barcode, with a digital solution via NHS.UK to be rolled out early next year. The letter service can be accessed by calling 119 or via NHS.UK.

It can take up to 7 days to receive the COVID-19 pass letter. 

Children will remain exempt from domestic certification policy in England and will not require an NHS COVID Pass to gain entry to venues.

The vaccination programme will be extended to offer all children aged 12 to 15 a second dose of an approved vaccine no sooner than 12 weeks after the first dose following the government’s acceptance of JCVI advice on 29 November.

Last updated:  12/01/2022