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Reader question: Does Spain accept the UK’s NHS Covid pass?

Now that fully vaccinated travellers from the UK don’t have to quarantine upon return from amber-list countries such as Spain, many Brits are looking to book last-minute summer holidays here and wondering whether they can use the UK’s NHS Covid Pass to enter.

Published: 21 July 2021 11:50 CEST
Reader question: Does Spain accept the UK's NHS Covid pass?
Does Spain accept NHS Covid Pass? Photo: Pau BARRENA / AFP

The answer is yes, Spain will accept the NHS Covid Pass for entry into the country.

The UK government website states: “Spain will accept the UK’s solutions to demonstrate your COVID vaccination status”. While the Spanish government website says they will allow: “Persons with a vaccination certificate, that the Ministry of Health recognises for this purpose, after verification by the health authorities, as well as their accompanying minors (under 12 years of age)”. 

What is the NHS Covid Pass and how do I get it?

The UK government website says that “The NHS COVID Pass lets you share your coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination records or test COVID-19 status in a secure way. It allows you to show others the details of your COVID-19 vaccine (or vaccines) when travelling abroad to some countries or territories”.

You can obtain your NHS COVID Pass after receiving either two doses of the Moderna, AstraZeneca or Pfizer vaccines or one dose of the Johnson & Johnson (Janssen) vaccine.

The only requirement, according to the UK government, is that you must have been vaccinated in England.

You can usually obtain your NHS COVID Pass within 24 hours of having your vaccination. However, it can take up to five days for your records to be updated.

Be aware that the NHS Covid Pass is not the same as the physical vaccination card you received when you got your Covid-19 jabs, the pass for travel must be downloaded from the official NHS App.

You can access the NHS COVID Pass through the free NHS App. You need to be registered with a GP in England to use the app.

You will see two barcodes within the NHS App: one barcode per vaccine. If you print a PDF of your COVID Pass status, your printed copy will show two barcodes. This can be used for travel, either in digital or paper form. 

Please note that the NHS App is not the same as the NHS COVID-19 tracing app.

READ ALSO – REMINDER: Everything Brits need to know about travel to Spain under new rules in July 2021

What if I’m not registered with a GP or the app is not working?

According to the UK government website if you’re not registered with a GP, you can still access the NHS COVID Pass via the NHS website or by calling 119 to request a letter instead.

Spain will accept NHS Covid Pass. Photo: Pau BARRENA / AFP

What if I’m travelling to Spain from Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland?

If you are travelling from Scotland and received your Covid-19 jabs there, you will not be able to use the NHS Covid Pass, however, if you are fully vaccinated, you can still get proof of this to travel to Spain. The Scottish government has confirmed that its Covid vaccine certificate is valid for travel to Spain. 

The Scottish NHS website says “You can request a printed copy of your vaccination status online or by phoning the COVID-19 Status Helpline. Letters will be sent by first class post and should arrive within 14 days”. 

You can also view and request to print your vaccination status online by logging in using your unique username and password. These can be found on your Covid-19 vaccination appointment letter.

According to the Welsh government website, people in Wales cannot currently use the NHS app to access their NHS COVID Pass and vaccination status. Instead, you can get your vaccination status in paper format if two weeks have passed since you completed a full course of the COVID-19 vaccine.

If you want to get your proof online and are in Wales, you’ll need to register for an NHS login, if you do not have one already, and then download or print the Pass as a PDF document. You should do this at least two weeks before you are due to travel. 
 
Those who have been vaccinated in Northern Ireland can apply for the Covid vaccine certificate on the NI Direct website. For those who cannot apply online, requests for a paper certificate can also be made by calling 0300 200 7814 Monday – Friday, 8am to 8pm.
 

Can I travel to Spain as soon as I’ve been fully vaccinated?

Even though you can download your NHS Covid Pass within 24 hours of your vaccination, it will not actually serve you for travel to Spain until at least 14 days afterward.

You will be allowed to enter Spain when you can show proof of being fully vaccinated at least 14 days prior to arrival in Spain with a vaccine authorised by the European Medicines Agency or by the World Health Organisation.

All documents must specify the name and surname of the passenger and you need to make sure that the name on your NHS Covid Pass matches the name on your passport, if not, you will need to contact your GP to get this rectified as it may not be valid for entry into Spain. 

Why does my NHS Covid Pass show it’s only valid for one month?

Many people have been reporting that when they log on to the NHS app and download their pass, it has an expiry date on it. What happens if the expiry date is before you travel to Spain?

According to the UK government website “The printed copy is valid until its expiry date”.

Several people on Twitter have said they have gotten around this by logging back into the app at a later date and downloading another NHS Covid Pass with a different expiry date, further in the future.

I am not fully vaccinated yet, can I still travel to Spain?

Yes, even if you’re not fully vaccinated yet and cannot get your NHS Covid Pass, you can still travel from the UK to Spain by showing a negative Covid-19 test.

According to the Spanish government website, they will accept diagnostic certificates of NAAT tests (nucleic acid amplification tests, e.g.: RT-PCR, RT-LAMP, TMA, HAD, NEAR, CRISPR & SDA). 

  • Please be aware, that in addition to any Covid passes, certificates or negative tests, Spain also requires all travellers to fill out a health control form before they arrive. 

READ ALSO: Can I travel to Spain if I’ve only had one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine?

Member comments

  1. Has anything changed regarding EU pass /fully vaccinated ,being accepted for Ex pats wanting to travel from Germany to Scotland ?

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TRAVEL NEWS

Reader question: What will EES mean for foreigners living in Europe?

The EU's new Entry & Exit System (EES) of enhanced passport controls is due to come into force later this year, but among many questions that remain is the situation for non-EU nationals who live in the EU or Schengen zone.

Published: 27 April 2024 07:59 CEST
Reader question: What will EES mean for foreigners living in Europe?

Currently scheduled to start in autumn 2024 (unless it’s delayed again, which is not unlikely) the EU’s new Entry & Exit System is basically an enhanced passport check at external EU borders, including a facial scan and fingerprinting.

You can find a full explanation of the new system HERE.

Travellers crossing an external EU or Schengen border for the first time will be required to complete EES ‘pre-registration’ formalities including that facial scan and fingerprinting.

There are, however, several groups exempt from EES and one of them is non-EU nationals who have a residency permit or long-stay visa for an EU country.

So if you’re a foreigner living in the EU or Schengen zone, here’s what you need to know.

Exempt

One of the stated aims of EES is to tighten up enforcement of over-staying – IE, people who stay longer than 90 days in every 180 without a visa, or those who overstay the limits of their visa.

Obviously these limits do not apply to non-EU nationals who are resident in the EU or Schengen zone, which is why this group is exempt from EES checks. They will instead be required to show their passport and residency permit/visa when crossing a border, just as they do now.

In its explanations of how EES will work, the European Commission is clear – exempt groups include non-EU residents of the Bloc.

A Commission spokesman told The Local: “Non-EU citizens residing in the EU are not in the scope of the EES and will not be subject to pre-enrollment of data in the EES via self-service systems. The use of automation remains under the responsibility of the Member States and its availability in border crossing points is not mandatory.

“When crossing the borders, holders of EU residence permits should be able to present to the border authorities their valid travel documents and residence permits.”

How this will work

How this will work on the ground, however, is a lot less clear.

Most ports/airports/terminals have two passport queues – EU and non-EU. It remains unclear whether the non-EU queue will have a separate section for those who are exempt from EES.

It does seem clear that exempt groups will not be able to use the automated passport scanners – since those cannot scan additional documents like residency permits – but should instead use manned passport booths. However it is not clear whether these will be available at all airports/ports/terminals or how non-EU residents of the EU will be directed to those services.

There’s also the issue that individual border guards are not always clear on the processes and rules for non-EU residents of the EU – even under the current system it’s relatively commonly for EU residents to have their passports incorrectly stamped or be given incorrect information about passport stamping by border guards.

Brits in particular will remember the immediate post-Brexit period when the processes as described by the EU and national authorities frequently did not match what was happening on the ground.

The Local will continue to try and get answers on these questions. 

READ ALSO What will EES mean for dual nationals

What if I live in the EU but I don’t have a visa/residency permit?

For most non-EU citizens, having either a visa or a residency permit is obligatory in order to be legally resident.

However, there is one exception: UK citizens who were legally resident in the EU prior to the end of the Brexit transition period and who live in one of the “declaratory” countries where getting a post-Brexit residency card was optional, rather than compulsory. Declaratory countries include Germany and Italy.

Although it is legal for people in this situation to live in those countries without a residency permit, authorities already advise people to get one in order to avoid confusion/hassle/delays at the border. Although EES does not change any rules relating to residency or travel, it seems likely that it will be more hassle to travel without a residency card than it is now.

Our advice? Things are going to be chaotic enough, getting a residency permit seems likely to save you a considerable amount of hassle.

Delays 

Although residents of the EU do not need to complete EES formalities, they will be affected if the new system causes long queues or delays at the border.

Several countries have expressed worries about this, with the UK-France border a particular cause for concern.

READ ALSO Travellers could face ’14 hours queues’ at UK-France border

Where does it apply?

EES is about external EU/Schengen borders, so does not apply if you are travelling within the Schengen zone – eg taking the train from France to Germany or flying from Spain to Sweden.

Ireland and Cyprus, despite being in the EU, are not in the Schengen zone so will not be using EES, they will continue to stamp passports manually.

Norway, Switzerland and Iceland – countries that are in the Schengen zone but not in the EU – will be using EES.

The full list of countries using EES is: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.

Therefore a journey between any of the countries listed above will not be covered by EES.

However a journey in or out of any of those countries from a country not listed above will be covered by EES.

You can find our full Q&A on EES HERE.

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