The content of the QR code on the current version of the Covid-19 Vaccination Certificate is not human readable. Travel authorities and third parties can scan the QR code on the next version of the certificate to verify the validity and authenticity of your Covid-19 Vaccination Certificate.
You can use the Covid-19 digital vaccination certificate as proof of vaccination for international travel. However, you must enquire about the country you intend to travel to, and their policies around vaccination certificates issued in South Africa.
You can call the Covid-19 Public Hotline at 0800 029 999 for assistance. The agent will be able to provide you with the vaccination code or resend you the SMS with the required code.
The Health Department says a newer version of the digital Covid-19 vaccination certificate may become available by the end of October. The Covid-19 Vaccine passport linked to a mobile application will be ready towards the end of November 2021.
The scannable QR code and digital (cryptographic) signatures will be gradually phased in according to the Department of Health. The Department of Health will continuously provide updates should newer versions of the vaccination certificate become available.
Only digital vaccination certificates downloaded during the trial period have expiry dates. Digital vaccination certificates downloaded after 8 October 2021 will not have expiry dates.
"We have a number of vaccines that have been demonstrated to be safe, efficacious and to be manufactured with high quality. And so, any of these vaccines are ones that are going to actually protect you. If you live in a country where there's more than one vaccine in the program, you should consider yourself lucky that you have access to the vaccine. And when it's your turn to actually get vaccine, that's the time when you should get it and and accept what vaccine is offered to you." - Dr. Katherine O'Brien from WHO
According to WHO’s Dr Katherine O’Brien, "on a daily basis, a weekly basis, a monthly basis, our immune systems are seeing all kinds of viruses that come at us in our noses, in our mouths, in our intestinal track on our hands. What's out there and readying itself for when it's exposed to something that could be causing disease. What the vaccines do is they provide to the immune system a small part of a germ that we know can cause disease. And it's training the immune system so that it is completely ready when it actually sees that particular germ."
"Vaccines, what they do is they are a part of the germ that our body can recognize and develop an immune response to so that the next time that we see the real germ, there are already fighters in our body to protect us against the infection." - Dr. Katherine O'Brien from WHO
