Postal applications for Sweden’s Covid vaccine pass face long delays

The e-Health Agency – the government agency in charge of issuing vaccine passes in Sweden –  has experienced a sharp increase in applications for vaccine passes since the government announced plans to introduce a vaccine pass system for indoor events with over 100 guests, starting on December 1st.

Since last week, digital applications have increased fivefold, with 120,000 digital vaccine passes being issued daily, broadcaster TV4 reports.

READ MORE: Who can actually get a Swedish Covid vaccine pass?

Digital applications are not currently experiencing a delay, but those who have to apply via post – such as people who lack a registered address in Sweden or a Swedish digital ID (such as BankID) – will have to wait several weeks before their applications are approved.

So far, the e-Health Agency has 9,000 postal applications which are still waiting to be approved.

“The way it looks at the moment, it could take several weeks,” Annemieke Ålenius, head of department at the e-Health Agency told TV4. “But we’re working on scaling up capacity, and that takes time.”

With the December 1st deadline just a few days away at the time of writing, this means that many of those who have applied by post will be left unable to attend events requiring a vaccine pass from next week, despite being vaccinated.

READ MORE: Will foreign Covid vaccine passes be valid at public events in Sweden?

They are not the only group who will be unable to attend events with a vaccine pass requirement from next week – people vaccinated in Sweden who do not have a personnummer or a coordination number are still waiting to be able to access their vaccine passes, as well as many people vaccinated outside of the EU who are currently unable to convert their vaccine passes to Swedish passes.

The latest official information from the government on when vaccine passes should be ready for this group is by the end of the year, although the DN daily reported on November 23rd that it may not be ready until after the holidays.