nhs travel vaccination record

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which vaccine you had
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You can also report any side effects from the COVID-19 vaccine

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How to get a vaccine certificate: Where to apply for NHS digital Covid passport or jab letter for travel

Maltese authorities made a last-minute decision to ban the nhs app as proof of vaccination, instead requiring a printed certificate.

Arriving passengers queue at UK Border Control at the Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport in London, Britain June 29, 2021. REUTERS/Hannah Mckay

British tourists travelling to Malta were turned away from their flight on Wednesday, due to confusion around vaccine certificates .

Maltese authorities made a last-minute decision to ban the NHS app as proof of vaccination, instead requiring a printed certificate.

These certificates take up to five working days to arrive, meaning people with upcoming holidays to Malta may be unable to travel.

How to get a vaccination letter

You can order a certificate to prove you have been vaccinated if you have received both doses of the Covid-19 jab, and your second vaccine was at least two weeks ago.

If you live in England, you can order the certificate online, here .

There are separate order forms for Wales and Scotland . Northern Ireland has not launched a paper scheme yet.

Once it arrives you can use this letter to travel abroad, or go to an event where you need proof you’ve had your vaccines.

Online passes

There are other ways to show proof of your vaccination status, including via the NHS app and with an online pass.

Most other countries that require proof of vaccination will accept these digital passes, as will UK-based events.

Malta travel restrictions: 75 Brits banned from boarding flights for trying to use NHS app as vaccine passport

Once you download the NHS app and enter some personal details you can display a section that shows your vaccination records.

The online pass works in a similar way, but is viewed on the NHS website rather than through the app.

You will need an NHS login to use these services. If you do not have one you can set one up here .

Malta confusion

At the end of June, 75 British passengers who were preparing to board a plane to Malta were turned away for failing to have a printed vaccination certificate.

“It’s so unfair to change the rules 12 hours before scheduled flights without a contingency plan for those who already have flights booked – shame on you Malta!!” one Facebook user wrote, after her parents were unable to fly because of the confusion.

Malta made an apparent U-turn several hours after the announcement, with Health Minister Chris Fearne stating the country would accept digital Covid certifications from Thursday, as soon as the country joined the EU Covid pass scheme

Mr Fearne was reported by the Times of Malta as saying: “We will be accepting EU Covid certificates as of tomorrow, and the UK certificate works with this system too, despite it not being part of the EU.”

But in a later statement, Malta’s health ministry refused to disclose how long it would take to fix “technical problems” which were impacting its ability to accept the UK’s digital vaccine passport.

Authorities in Malta blamed the UK saying Britain had not given them a “verifier” app which would enable border force officials in Malta to check the NHS app was real.

Malta, which is on the green list, announced earlier this week that it now requires anyone entering from the UK who has not been fully vaccinated to quarantine upon arrival.

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Travel and Vaccinations

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Travel vaccinations are an essential part of holiday and travel planning, particularly if your journey takes you to an exotic destination or 'off the beaten track'. The risks are not restricted to tropical travel, although most travel vaccines are targeted at diseases which are more common in the tropics.

For more general information about travel see the separate leaflet called Health Advice for Travel Abroad .

This leaflet discusses the vaccinations that are available and gives some idea of the time you need to allow to complete a full protective course of vaccination. Further information specific to your destination can be obtained from your surgery (if they have the resources to offer this service), from specialist travel clinics and from a number of websites. You will find a selection of these listed at the bottom of this leaflet and under references.

The rise in worldwide and adventurous tourism has seen a massive increase in people travelling to exotic destinations. This leads to exposure to diseases that are less likely to occur at home. These are diseases against which we have no natural immunity and against which we are not routinely immunised in the UK. They include:

Insect-borne conditions such as malaria, dengue, yellow fever and Zika virus.
Diseases acquired from eating and drinking, such as hepatitis A and traveller's diarrhoea.
Diseases acquired from others or conditions of poor hygiene, such as hepatitis B and Ebola virus.
Diseases acquired directly from animals, such as rabies.

These are illnesses which might not only spoil your holiday but might also pose a risk to your life. For specific advice on travelling to more remote places: see the separate leaflet called Travelling to Remote Locations .

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How long before you travel should you get vaccinated?

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Before travelling outside the UK it is important to check whether there are any vaccinations available which could protect you. You can do this by making a travel planning appointment at your GP surgery. During your consultation a specialist travel nurse will complete a risk assessment to determine which vaccines are right for you. If your GP does not offer this service, or does not have an appointment available before you travel, then you will need to seek this advice from a private travel clinic.

There are also several websites which aim to offer up-to-date, country-specific advice on vaccinations and on disease patterns.

You can find out if travel vaccines are recommended for any countries you are planning to visit from the Travel Health Pro website or NHS website Fitfortravel if you are in Scotland.

Vaccination courses need to be planned well in advance. Some vaccinations involve a course of injections at specified intervals and it can take up to six months to complete a course. Some vaccinations can't be given together.

The following table lists the travel vaccinations which are available and in common use in the UK. Always check with your surgery or online before travelling, particularly to unusual destinations, for local outbreaks of disease which mean other specific vaccinations are advised.

Travel vaccinations (adults)

The protection offered by vaccination is not always 100%. Vaccination will greatly reduce your chances of acquiring the disease and in many cases the protection level offered is extremely high. The protection will also not be lifelong. However, there isn't a vaccine available for every disease - for example, there is none at present against malaria.

Even where a vaccine is available, vaccination should not be the only thing you rely on for protection against illness. It is important to know the risks; taking sensible steps to avoid exposing yourself to disease is by far the most useful thing you can do.

Pregnant women

It is important that pregnant women also receive the necessary vaccinations before travelling. Some vaccines, however, are not safe to use in pregnancy - see table below. In some cases your doctor or nurse may ask you to consider whether the journey could wait until after the birth of your baby, as the risks of disease may be very real and you may be unable to fully protect yourself and your baby.

There is currently no vaccine or medicine to prevent Zika virus, which is transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes and which is of particular concern to pregnant women due to its link to birth defects. The recent outbreak of the virus is currently considered a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. See the separate leaflet called Zika Virus.

Off on holiday?

Make sure you get your immunisations ahead of travelling abroad. Speak to a local pharmacist today

No vaccination is available against malaria. People who live permanently in malarial zones have partial protection but they lose this swiftly when they move away. Protection against malaria is through a combination of avoidance of mosquito bites and the use of malaria tablets.

Tablets have to be started before entering the malarial zone and continued for some days or weeks after leaving it. The recommended tablet regime varies by area. Your practice nurse will have access to up-to-date advice on recommendations for your journey. See the separate leaflet called Malaria Prevention for more details.

There are many tropical diseases for which no vaccination is yet available. These include:

Insect (arthropod)-borne viruses such as dengue, Zika and chikungunya .
Infections carried by water-dwelling organisms such as bilharzia and flukes
Parasitic diseases such as leishmaniasis, onchocerciasis, trypanosomiasis and hydatid disease. Parasites are living things (organisms) that live within, or on, another organism.

There is also as yet no vaccine against HIV .

Most of these conditions can be avoided by travellers taking reasonable precautions around:

Food and drink.
Swimming in water known to be infested with parasitic organisms.
Exposure to biting insects.
Unprotected sexual encounters.

People often at greatest risk when travelling are those visiting a country which they think of as their place of origin, where members of their family live and roots may be. People often believe - falsely - that as one-time residents who may have been born and raised there, they have a natural immunity. They feel that they are not on holiday but visiting home and that vaccinations aren't needed.

Unfortunately this is not true. We acquire natural immunity by living in a place and being constantly exposed to the diseases that are present. When we leave the area for distant shores that protection is rapidly lost and we need the protection of vaccination, together with the other precautions listed above.

This is particularly true of malaria, where visitors 'going back home' may find their relatives puzzled and even amused that they are taking anti-malarial medication. Even so, it's very important to do so. It's only by living there all the time that you acquire your resident relatives' level of immunity. Your immune system has a short memory for this sort of partial immunity.

Many NHS surgeries offer a full range of travel vaccinations. However, your surgery may not have the resources to fit you in before you travel. Alternatively, you can visit private specialist travel clinics.

The NHS does not usually cover travellers for vaccinations relating to exotic travel, although some vaccinations such as hepatitis A are usually free. Aid workers and healthcare workers are often offered free vaccinations against occupational risks but others have to pay.

Anti-malarial tablets are never free and can add a substantial sum to the cost of your trip. Whilst this may seem expensive, it is usually a small sum relative to the costs of your travel. Safeguarding your health should be considered an essential part of any trip.

If a vaccination certificate is issued keep it and update it over the years so that you have a full record. Your NHS surgery will have a record of vaccines they have administered to you and can often issue a copy. However, the yellow fever vaccination certificate needs to be saved, as this cannot be re-issued.

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Disclaimer: This article is for information only and should not be used for the diagnosis or treatment of medical conditions. Egton Medical Information Systems Limited has used all reasonable care in compiling the information but make no warranty as to its accuracy. Consult a doctor or other health care professional for diagnosis and treatment of medical conditions. For details see our conditions .

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There are no longer any domestic requirements to demonstrate your vaccination status.

The NHS COVID Pass is no longer required to travel abroad to any countries. If you are travelling abroad you should review travel entry requirements for the countries you will visit or travel through.

The NHS COVID Pass was developed at the height of the pandemic to let you share your COVID-19 vaccination status in a secure way. It was mainly used for international travel, as well as for some domestic purposes, such as entry to venues or events.

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A child about to receive an MMR vaccination

Labour reveals plan to digitise NHS personal child health records

Parents and NHS would be able to monitor vaccinations and checkups through digital version of ‘red book’

Labour plans to digitise the NHS “red book” that parents use for their children’s medical records as part of a series of changes to the NHS app.

Parents and the NHS would be able to see if children are behind on jabs or checkups through a new digital record, with automatic notifications to prompt them to book appointments under the party’s plans.

The personal child health record, also known as the red book, has been handed out to new parents for the past 30 years.

Previous health secretaries have hoped to digitise it during their tenure, including Jeremy Hunt and Matt Hancock, but it has yet to happen.

Labour hopes its plans will help to boost MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccination rates, which have fallen in recent years, while measles outbreaks have become more common.

Wes Streeting, the shadow health secretary, said: “A child born today will live to see the 22nd century and things we can’t begin to imagine.

“Labour wants them to be part of the healthiest generation that ever lived. That’s why we will digitise the red book, so children’s health records are on the NHS app.

“This major step will transform children’s healthcare and will mean more children protected against measles. Now measles is back. It’s hard to think of a clearer sign of Britain’s decline under the Tories.

“With the red book on the app, the NHS will be able to notify every parent of an unprotected child, give them accurate information about the MMR vaccine, and invite their child to get vaccinated. That’s how a modern health service would tackle this public health crisis.”

Labour will also commit to giving patients greater control over their own healthcare through the NHS app.

This would include access to their medical records on their phone, notifications about screenings and vaccines they are eligible for, and being told what care they can expect when diagnosed with long-term conditions such as asthma or diabetes.

Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, claimed his party would “give power to the patient” and that GPs would be able to ensure “time isn’t wasted on box-ticking”.

He added: “In 2024, patients still wait on the phone at 8am, or even queue up in person, just to see a doctor.

“It’s no wonder so many people don’t bother or don’t have time, illness is caught too late, pressures on the NHS pile up, and lives are lost.

“The app shouldn’t just be for healthcare, but healthier living too. When you reach the right age, you’ll receive notifications for jabs, tests and screening, to catch diseases like breast and bowel cancer early.”

Health policy

Most viewed

Labour sets out plans to digitise children’s healthcare records

Labour will digitise the NHS red book parents use for their children’s medical records as part of a series of reforms to the NHS app.

Parents and the NHS would be able to see if children are behind on jabs or check-ups through a new digital record, with automatic notifications to prompt them to book appointments under the party’s plans.

The red book has been handed out to new parents for the past 30 years.

The problems with the NHS are clear. It’s a 20th century service that hasn’t changed with the times and isn’t fit for the modern era

Previous health secretaries have hoped to digitise it during their tenure, including Jeremy Hunt and Matt Hancock , but so far the plans have not borne out.

Labour hopes its plans will help to boost MMR vaccination rates, which have fallen in recent years.

Measles outbreaks have at the same time become more common.

Wes Streeting MP, Labour’s shadow health secretary, said: “A child born today will live to see the 22nd century and things we can’t begin to imagine. Labour wants them to be part of the healthiest generation that ever lived. That’s why we will digitise the red book, so children’s health records are on the NHS App.

Writing in the Sun newspaper, Mr Streeting insisted the NHS was “a service, not a shrine”.

He added: “It is judged by how well it serves the public, not how heavy a price we’re paying for failure.

“The problems with the NHS are clear. It’s a 20th century service that hasn’t changed with the times and isn’t fit for the modern era.”

Labour will also commit to give patients greater control over their own healthcare through the NHS app.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer claimed his party would “give power to the patient”, and that GPs could ensure “time isn’t wasted on box-ticking”.

“In 2024, patients still wait on the phone at 8am, or even queue up in person, just to see a doctor. It’s no wonder so many people don’t bother or don’t have time, illness is caught too late, pressures on the NHS pile up, and lives are lost,” he said.

Sir Keir added: “The app shouldn’t just be for healthcare, but healthier living too. When you reach the right age, you’ll receive notifications for jabs, tests and screening, to catch diseases like breast and bowel cancer early.”

Register now for one of the Evening Standard’s newsletters. From a daily news briefing to Homes & Property insights, plus lifestyle, going out, offers and more. For the best stories in your inbox, click here .

Starmer visit to biomedical research institute

Struggling with rising cases and low vaccination rates, Moscow announces a lockdown.

Like many countries, Russia has seesawed between tighter and looser pandemic restrictions. As the coronavirus claims more victims, the pendulum is now swinging toward tightening.

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By Andrew E. Kramer

Oct. 21, 2021

MOSCOW — Schools, shops and restaurants in the city of Moscow will close next week, municipal officials said, in one of the tightest lockdowns in the Russian capital since the pandemic began, a measure made necessary by low vaccination rates.

Russia’s coronavirus response, like that of many other countries, has seesawed between strict controls and lax enforcement of mask-wearing and vaccination rules. Russia pivoted again this week toward tighter lockdowns as reports of new cases and Covid-19 deaths climbed.

Reported cases are up 33 percent over the last two weeks, reaching more than 32,400, according to a New York Times database . And on average over the past week, 983 people a day died from the coronavirus ; on some days that number exceeded 1,000. Only Russian-made coronavirus vaccines are available in the country, and many people are hesitant to get them. Russia’s vaccination rate of 33 percent of the population is lower than the global average of 37 percent and far behind the rates in most of Europe.

To combat the surge in cases and deaths, President Vladimir V. Putin on Wednesday declared a countrywide “nonworking” week from Oct. 30 to Nov. 7 , extending a regular fall holiday by several days. The restrictions the city of Moscow announced on Thursday were even stricter.

Mayor Sergey Sobyanin ordered schools and nonessential businesses to close two days sooner, starting on Oct. 28. He said in a statement posted online that the spread of the virus had gone “by the worst scenario” and that Moscow would soon be setting daily records for new cases.

Early in the pandemic, Moscow locked down more strictly than many Western countries did. Residents were prohibited from leaving their apartments other than to shop at grocery stores or pharmacies, attend medical appointments or walk their dogs.

The city also lifted many restrictions this year before other European countries did on a wide scale, a move that became a point of pride. Mr. Putin contrasted Moscow’s bustling restaurants with the continuing lockdowns abroad.

Over the summer, Moscow imposed, but then dropped, a requirement that patrons be vaccinated to eat in some restaurants or to visit bars. Enforcement of mask-wearing rules in Russia is generally lax.

Andrew E. Kramer is a reporter based in the Moscow bureau. He was part of a team that won the 2017 Pulitzer Prize in International Reporting for a series on Russia’s covert projection of power. More about Andrew E. Kramer

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Vaccinations for COVID-19

What your NHS COVID Pass letter tells you (easy read)

Easy-read version of the non-personal information in your NHS COVID Pass letter about your COVID-19 status.

This publication was withdrawn on 27 March 2024

This guidance was withdrawn on 8 December 2023

The NHS COVID Pass service has now closed. There are no longer any domestic requirements to demonstrate your vaccination status in England.

The NHS COVID Pass is no longer required to travel abroad to any countries.

If you are travelling abroad, you should review  travel entry requirements  for the countries you will visit or travel through.

See information about COVID certificates in  Guernsey ,  Jersey  and the  Isle of Man .

Applies to England

What your NHS COVID Pass letter for travel tells you (easy read)

PDF , 2.36 MB , 6 pages

Your NHS COVID Pass letter is used for travel abroad and to show others that you have had a full course of the COVID-19 vaccine (including a booster vaccination if you have received one).

You should get the letter within 7 working days of requesting one.

If you do not have access to a smartphone, computer or tablet, you can request a letter by calling 119 from within the UK. Select the ‘NHS COVID Pass service’ and ask for an NHS COVID Pass letter to be posted to you.

Find out more about using your NHS COVID Pass for travel abroad .

Updated information about the NHS COVID Pass letter.

Added easy-read version of 'What your NHS COVID Pass letter for domestic use tells you'.

Updated to include information about single dose and 2-dose letters.

Changing title of guidance to reflect that from 21 June 2021, the NHS service to demonstrate your COVID-19 vaccination status is now called the NHS COVID Pass.

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View your GP health record

Your GP health record includes information about the care you've had from your GP surgery.

When you view your record online, you may only see information that was added recently. If you need to see older information, you'll have to ask your GP surgery to make it visible.

What's not in your GP record

information kept by other services (such as hospitals, dentists and opticians) that has not been sent to your GP – to get this information, you'll need to contact these services directly

How to see all the information in your GP health record

When you view your GP health record online, you should be able to see any information that was added recently.

If you need to see older information in your record (historic record information), you'll have to ask your GP surgery to make it available online.

You can either:

email or call your GP surgery and tell them you want to see historical information in your online GP health record
mention it to a receptionist at the surgery when you go for your next appointment

Let your GP surgery know if you only need access to something specific in your record (such as previous test results). This can be quicker than getting access to your full historic record.

The surgery will consider your request and make sure there are no issues with making the information available to you (for example, if it could put you or someone else at risk of harm). This can take a few weeks.

If there are no issues with making this information available, you'll be able to see it when you view your GP record online.

View your GP health record using your NHS App or account

You can view your GP health record using the NHS App or by logging into your account on the NHS website.

You can create an account if you do not already have one.

To view your GP record online, you must be:

registered with a GP surgery
aged 16 or over

When you create an account, you'll need to prove your identity before you can view your GP health record. This helps keep your record secure.

Use other GP online services and apps

You may be able to use other GP online services and apps to view your GP record.

Some services and apps are only available in certain areas. Ask your GP surgery which you can use.

Contact your GP surgery

You can ask for your GP record at your GP surgery. They can give you a printed copy of your record or send you a digital version.

Viewing someone else's GP health record

Find out about accessing someone else's medical records

Non-urgent advice: Contact your GP surgery if:

you're unable to see your record
information is missing or has disappeared from your record
you can only see very recent information in your record and you need to see older information
there's incorrect information in your record
you can see information that should not be there (for example, you can see information that's not yours)
you do not want to be able to see your record
someone is pressuring you for information in your record

Email or call the surgery, or speak to a receptionist at the surgery when you go for your next appointment.

Page last reviewed: 8 November 2023 Next review due: 8 November 2026

Early-stage trial shows promising results for 'desperately needed' chlamydia vaccine

The common sexually transmitted infection can cause infertility in women and is responsible for vision loss in an estimated 1.9 million people worldwide.

Friday 12 April 2024 11:32, UK

Chlamydia trachomatis, an obligate intracellular human pathogen, is one of four bacterial species in the genus Chlamydia. 3D illustration

An early-stage clinical trial has come back with promising results for a chlamydia vaccine, researchers have said.

There is currently no jab to protect against the disease, which is one of the most common sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in the UK.

Almost 200,000 cases were identified in England alone in 2022, a nearly 25% rise from the year before, according to latest NHS figures.

Chlamydia is a common cause of infertility in women. It can cause pelvic inflammatory disease, which can lead to scar tissue which makes it harder to get pregnant if left untreated.

The bacteria can also cause an eye infection that is responsible for vision loss in 1.9 million people worldwide, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the US.

An early clinical trial of the experimental vaccine, led by researchers in the UK and Denmark , found it was safe and induced an immune response, according to findings published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases journal.

More than 150 people took part in the study between 2020 and 2022 at the National Institute for Health Research in London.

Participants were equally split between healthy men and women with an average age of 26. None of them had chlamydia.

The researchers tested several different dosages of the vaccine, and participants got either the jab or a placebo on three separate days over a period of almost four months.

Read more: STI rates soar in UK Gonorrhoea and syphilis diagnoses hit record levels New test for 'most common STI you've never heard of'

Although the vaccine induced an immune response, Dr Hilary Reno, medical director of the St Louis County Sexual Health Clinic, said questions remained about its effectiveness.

She said: "Does it confer the ability to hold off infection with chlamydia? If you do have an infection, does it mean you're more likely to have an asymptomatic infection?

"We don't know that and that's what the next phase of studies would be."

The researchers are now planning to launch a larger, "phase two" trial that would look at the vaccine's effectiveness.

The hope is that one day the jab will be able to prevent both infections in the reproductive system, as well as in the eyes, said Jes Dietrich, a senior scientist at the Statens Serum Institute in Denmark and a lead author of the study.

In addition to a shot in the arm, participants in the study also received a vaccine in the form of an eye drop.

"I was very pleasantly surprised because it's really difficult to induce immunity in the eye," Dr Dietrich said.

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David Harvey, executive director of the National Coalition of STD Directors in the US, said the vaccine was "desperately needed".

One of the other most common STIs is the Human Papillomavirus (HPV), although most people with the virus have no symptoms.

Some strains are associated with cervical cancer and the UK has been offering all secondary school girls an HPV vaccine since 2008.