Explainer | What is a vaccine passport? When and how will it be available?

As the nations across the globe are focussed on vaccination and breaking the transmission chain, governments and airlines suggest 'vaccine passports' as a feasible coronavirus vaccine certificate that would make travelling amid the pandemic era hassle-free.

As sales of fake Covid-19 negative test results become more widespread, experts have also pointed out that it is important to develop digital passes that are secure and reliable at the same time.

Read: The hidden epidemic on travel’s front line

However, having to prove that someone has been vaccinated in order to participate in activities or enter certain countries is not a new concept. For decades, people travelling to some countries have had to prove that they have been vaccinated against diseases such as yellow fever, rubella and cholera.

What is a Covid-19 vaccine passport?

A vaccination pass or passport is documentation proving that the individual has been vaccinated against Covid-19. Some versions will also allow people to show that they have tested negative for the virus, and therefore can more easily travel.

The versions being worked on now by airlines, industry groups, nonprofits and technology companies will be something people can pull up on their mobile phone as an app or part of their digital wallet.

What is the need of the passport?

As more people are inoculated, there will likely be aspects of public life in which only people who have been vaccinated are allowed to participate.

In order to travel internationally, government and health authorities will need to know if you have been vaccinated or have tested negative for the virus. Many countries are already requiring proof of a negative test for entry.

Such passes could be essential to restarting the tourism industry, Zurab Pololikashvili, secretary-general of the United Nations World Tourism Organization told The New York Times.

How will the pass be made available to global citizens?

The challenge right now is creating a document or app that is accepted around the world, that protects the privacy of the user and is accessible to people regardless of their wealth or access to smartphones. In a world where more than 1 billion people aren’t able to prove their identity because they lack passports, birth certificates, driver’s licenses or national identification cards, digital documents that show vaccine status may heighten inequality and risk, leaving many people behind.

Also Read | 25 countries in queue for 'Made in India' Covid-19 vaccine: S Jaishankar

Technologists and travel industry experts said that although it is possible to rush tech solutions that allow people to have one-use apps, creating long-lasting ethical technology or systems that will not store people’s data, or make it possible to track where they are, takes time.

Which are the countries and airlines looking forward to it?

US President Joe Biden has asked government agencies to “assess the feasibility” of linking coronavirus vaccine certificates with other vaccination documents and producing digital versions of them.

Two Nordic countries Sweden and Denmark have announced they would start the development of digital vaccine certificates, to be used for travel and potentially more. The countries said the certificates would be designed to enable citizens to travel aboard but also hinted they could potentially be used to check whether someone was vaccinated if they were attending something like a sports or cultural event.

Etihad Airways and Emirates are set to start using a digital travel pass, developed by the International Air Transport Association, to help passengers manage their travel plans and provide airlines and governments documentation that they have been vaccinated or tested for Covid-19.

Are the passes available in India?

It is not known whether the Indian government is mulling the issuance of coronavirus vaccine passports. Britain also currently has no plans to roll out vaccine passports but is keeping the situation under review.

What does WHO have to say about the passport?

While the World Health Organization (WHO) is in favour of countries issuing vaccination certificates, WHO Europe director Hans Kluge told AFP in an interview that he was opposed to the idea of "vaccination passports" required for travel.

Also Read: WHO calls for bigger vaccine rollout as US nears 'breaking point'

"We certainly don't want to have a situation where there are so-called vaccine passports, that's something that we are definitely not subscribing to because it will increase inequities," he said.

(With agency inputs)