New travel rules coming into effect in certain countries could see Irish passengers refused entry without a negative PCR test if they have not received a Covid-19 booster vaccine.
Expiration dates have been announced over recent days, and so those who were first in line for their dose may have to avoid certain countries for travel if they’re not planning on getting the booster.
While the Irish government has said it is not planning on implementing an expiry date on Covid certs for travel or access to services, others have already announced expiration dates for initial vaccines.
The changes are being made in line with the latest surge of infection alongside recent studies that show immunity beginning to wane five months after receiving a second dose.
Israel and Vietnam have brought in a ‘fixed validity period’ for all Covid Certs, meaning that vaccinated travelers can visit, but only if it has been less than 180 days, or six months, since the final dose.
If that period has passed, passengers will need to show proof of a booster shot at least 14 days before arrival in the country.
Meanwhile, Croatia and Austria have both agreed to set an expiry date for July and August 2022 - after which a booster dose will be essential for travel.
According to the Croatian government, passengers planning trips must present a vaccine Cert not older than one year - and it must show proof of vaccination from a list of approved doses by EU regulators.
As for Austria, a vaccine certificate is valid for the same timeframe - one year - after the second dose has been administered.
The rules are slightly different for people that have recovered or who were inoculated with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine - those people’s certs are valid for 270 days.
Under these rules, fully vaccinated travelers may end up being treated as if they were unvaccinated and will need to show a negative test on arrival for entry into the country.
These changes will then see all travelers who have had a third or booster vaccination, be issued with a certificate valid for 360 days from the third jab.
