People who are fully inoculated and want to travel abroad will have a CoWin certificate with their full date of birth, official sources said on Saturday, September 25, amid ongoing discussions between India and the UK over COVID-19 vaccination certificates. Currently, CoWin certificates only mention the beneficiary's age based on the year of birth besides other details.
The new feature is being introduced in compliance with WHO norms and likely to be available from next week. "It has been decided that a new feature will be added to the CoWin under which those who are fully vaccinated and want to travel abroad will have the full date of birth on their vaccination certificates," an official source said.
The UK on Wednesday, September 22, had amended its new travel guidelines to include the Indian-made version of the AstraZeneca vaccine, Covishield, in its updated list of approved COVID-19 vaccines. Following India's strong criticism over the UK's refusal to recognise Covishield, London has included the vaccine in its updated international travel advisory.
However, Indian travellers vaccinated with two doses of Covishield would still have to undergo 10 days of quarantine in the UK notwithstanding the amendment, UK officials had clarified on Wednesday, saying the inclusion of the vaccine would not make much of a difference.
"We're clear Covishield is not a problem. The UK is open to travel and we're already seeing a lot of people going from India to the UK, be it tourists, business people or students," British High Commissioner Alex Ellis had said in a statement on Wednesday. "We have been having detailed technical discussions regarding certification, with the builders of the CoWin app and the NHS app, about both apps. They're happening at a rapid pace, to ensure that both countries mutually recognise the vaccine certificates issued by each other," he had said.