Hi

I was vaccinated in the U.K. with the Astra Zeneca vaccine and I am now finding I can’t get a Swiss Covid-19 vaccine certificate. Appreciate that they are only accepting mRNA vaccines but it gives me a problem.


They also accept EU vaccine certification which includes the AZ vaccine but as we are a non-EU member I can’t get one of those either.

This means even though I am fully vaccinated I can’t attend events unless I get a Covid test each time.

Any suggestions what I can do without getting another course of vaccines here in Switzerland? Also would it be safe if i did get a further two vaccine shots?

Yes, EF with its full roster of armchair doctors can of course confirm that getting another course of vaccines is perfectly safe. Oh wait, no it can't, ask an actual doctor.

As for the other part, as you said Switzerland only accepts MRNA vaccines, so it's unlikely that they would give you a vaccine certificate for an unrecognised vaccine that does not meet those approval requirements.

Looks like you are caught between a rock and a hard place until/if CH approve the AZ vaccine or you get a dose of MRNA after consulting a doctor to see if it's ok or not.

If you were vaccinated in the UK can't you get a certificate from there? Via NHS?

UK certificates for unrecognised vaccines would not be valid within Switzerland as exemption from tests.

Yet they are perfectly acceptable as a means of avoiding quarantine for uk travellers arriving in Switzerland.
Where’s the logic in that?

As said above, the NHS certificate is not recognised in Switzerland. An EU one with an Astra Zeneca vaccine is accepted but being an Non-EU member I can’t get one of those either

Exactly - I have a UK NHS App certificate and no issue whatsoever travelling to Switzerland using that.

I also got it scanned last night in Zurich for access to a club and they scanned the NHS QR code from the app and let me in just fine so I'm not sure who you feel aren't accepting the UK certificate as did my mate also on iPhone. Our other mate though had an Android phone and the NHS app wouldn't scan for the club, so I'm not sure quite why there was a difference as we all had the NHS app.

Are you a Swiss resident and were you one at the time of vaccine?

That’s great news - I just read online that the NHS app is not accepted in Switzerland

Hi,

Yes I had a Swiss residency permit at the time I received the vaccine (in the U.K.) and I still have a residency permit now

I've flown out twice since the rules changed 3 weeks ago and no issues using the NHS app to fly from UK to Switzerland.

I think it’s fine to fly out of the U.K. with but the problem seems to be using it to enter events whilst In Switzerland

I feel very sure I've read personal accounts of people with UK (AZ) vaccinations getting them recognised in Switzerland and receiving a Swiss covid certificate.

I have the opposite problem - getting the UK to recognise my Swiss vaccinations despite having the WHO vaccine booklet and Swiss certificate.

That rule is just ridiculous! If you’ve been vaccinated with an approved vaccine it shouldn’t matter what country it was given in

Why should it not matter? Switzerland has not approved AZ - they have their own reason. You went ahead and got vaccinated somewhere else where you presumably were not really entitled had you followed procedure. Say you got sick from it, would be your Ch insurance to pay. Not really a fan of people who bend rules then complainsaid bending is causing them trouble

Switzerland approve the Astra Zeneca vaccine via the European vaccine certificate but not the NHS certificate for the same vaccine.

As for your other comments, I really don’t understand what you’re talking about. No rules were broken at all and I am still a U.K. resident so what is the problem with me getting vaccinated in the U.K.?

The United Kingdom is currently in talks with the EU to link its National Health Service’s (NHS) COVID app with the EU’s framework, though no confirmation of or date for this integration has been set.

If that happens then hopefully your problem will go away.

Anyway, a note to be careful
Covishield is not yet EU approved so is not accepted for entry to some EU countries but is claimed to be OK for Switzerland. Those affected will have batch numbers 4120Z001, 4120Z002, and 4120Z003 on their patient card and NHS app.

An application has never been made for approval of this vaccine by the EMA.

Wow, I’ve not seen that and hopefully that will happen so thanks for the info.

As for the Indian manufactured vaccines I did check that when the data was first published and fortunately my doses were not part of those batches.

Londonkid was responding to my second statement about UK not (yet) acknowledging vaccinations being given in Switzerland.
In any case, any one in the UK, legally or otherwise, is entitled to receive a vaccination. There could have been some bending involved but we don't know that.
Switzerland accepts any vaccine approved in the EU for the purposes of entry to the country (don't they?), including AZ (excluding that odd batch)

If the rule bending was referring to me then that certainly wasn’t the case. The message was a little confusing though!