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Covid-19 vaccines For Members

Reader question: Can I get a Covid certificate in Switzerland if I was vaccinated with AstraZeneca?

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Reader question: Can I get a Covid certificate in Switzerland if I was vaccinated with AstraZeneca?
All versions of the AstraZeneca vaccine are approved in order to enter Switzerland. Photo by Tiziana FABI / AFP

Switzerland has not approved the AstraZeneca vaccine and is not administering it domestically. What does this mean for people who got the jab?

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PLEASE NOTE: From Monday, September 20th, Switzerland will change the entry rules, allowing those vaccinated with AstraZeneca to get a Covid certificate. Read here for more

Switzerland administers vaccines from only two manufacturers: Moderna and Biontech/Pfizer.

While Johnson and Johnson is also approved, it is not administered in Switzerland. 

Despite not being approved in Switzerland, AstraZeneca is one of the world's most common Covid-19 vaccine. 

Early on in the pandemic, Switzerland agreed to buy several million doses of the vaccine, but did not approve the vaccine for use. 

Eventually, Switzerland donated its doses abroad in June, seemingly foregoing the possibility of approving the AstraZeneca jab at any point in the future. 

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What does Switzerland’s AstraZeneca policy mean for travellers and the Covid certificate? 

Obviously, if you have been vaccinated with AstraZeneca you have not been vaccinated in Switzerland. 

But if you want to enter Switzerland, will AstraZeneca be enough? 

Here it is important to distinguish between entering Switzerland and the Covid certificate. 

Switzerland’s Covid certificate can be used to enter Switzerland, but it is not a requirement. 

Several vaccines are accepted for entry into Switzerland, including AstraZeneca. 

Here you can simply show proof of vaccination in paper or app form at the border. 

More information is available in the following link. 

UPDATE: Which vaccines are accepted for entry into Switzerland?

The rules however have been different for the Covid certificate. 

Which vaccines are accepted for Switzerland’s Covid certificate?

If you do not come from Switzerland you can still get a Swiss Covid certificate. 

To do this, you need to present evidence of being vaccinated in your home country. 

To do so, you will need to contact the authorities in the Swiss canton you are in with proof of vaccination. You can find out how to do that here. 

UPDATED: A step-by-step guide to getting the Swiss Covid certificate

You should have an official proof of vaccination from the country in which you were vaccinated, which includes your name, date of birth, the name of the vaccine, batch numbers, and dates of first and second vaccination.

Prior to September 20th, 2021, in order to get this, you needed to be fully vaccinated with a vaccine which is authorised in Switzerland. 

According to the Swiss government, this was only Pfizer/Biontech, Moderna and Johnson and Johnson, not AstraZeneca as the Swiss government outlined here 

However, from September 20th, anyone vaccinated with AstraZeneca - along with Sinopharm and Sinovac and any other vaccines with emergency use authorisation - can get the Swiss Covid certificate

So if I have been vaccinated with AstraZeneca I can get the Covid Certificate in Switzerland?

Yes. Guidelines for how to apply for the Swiss Covid certificate after being vaccinated with AstraZeneca are available at the following link. 

Please note that mixed vaccinations are also accepted. 

If you have been vaccinated with one dose of AstraZeneca and one of either Moderna or Biontech Pfizer, you will be able to get the Covid certificate in Switzerland. 

Canton-by-canton: How visitors can get Switzerland’s Covid certificate

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More information is available at the official link here. 

Please note: This report was updated to reflect changes in the government's policy on accepting foreign vaccines. 

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Anonymous 2021/09/10 14:20
If you have been vaccinated with AstraZenica outside of Switzerland, I note that you can get the Covid App if you test negative. Does that give you the app for a period? Or just one event? I'm curious, as I read that ski resorts are considering requiring the app before you access the mountain railways. Hopefully a daily test will not be a requirement.
  • Anonymous 2021/10/05 10:54
    Hi Simon, AstraZeneca has been accepted for the Covid certificate since September 20th. As for testing, more information is available at the following link. https://www.thelocal.ch/20210910/explained-how-to-get-switzerlands-covid-certificate-with-a-negative-test/
Anonymous 2021/09/09 19:25
What are the reasons for not excepting Astra jab?Not enough to ban one has to give valid reasons otherwise it does not pass the smell test.
  • Anonymous 2021/10/05 10:54
    Hi Carl, Please note that the policy has since been changed, and Astra is now accepted. As for the reasons, you'd have to ask the Swiss government. Daniel.

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