CovPass: How the Digital Coronavirus Vaccination Certificate Works

• 

  CovPass app logo

• Fully vaccinated peopel can pickup their digital vaccination certificate many pharmacies in Berlin.

Many places in Berlin require digital proof of vaccination for visitors. With CovPass, you can store relevant certificates on your smartphone.

What is the digital vaccination certificate?

The digital certificate is an additional way to document and show proof of your vaccination status. Vaccinated people can use it in addition to the yellow paper vaccination certificate to store their vaccination data on their smartphone. The digital vaccination certificate is a printed document with a QR code or barcode. You can scan this code with your phone to important the certificate into suitable apps.

What benefits does the digital certificate offer?

The digital vaccination certificate basically offers all the benefits that a paper vaccination certificate or a vaccination passport with corresponding entries provides
- for example, exemption from possible testing obligations or quarantine requirements. In addition, having digital proof of your vaccination status on your phones saves you from having to carry around the yellow paper booklet.

Who can get the digital CovPass?

Currently, all fully vaccinated persons can get the digital vaccination certificate. According to the Federal Ministry of Health (BMG), all people who are entitled to a vaccination can have the certificate issued in addition to the analogue vaccination certificate.

What will it cost me?

"This is set up by the ministry as a free service," says a spokesperson for the German Pharmacists Association. This applies to those who have been vaccinated. However, the system is not completely free of charge: the pharmacies bill the public health system for the proof.

Where can I get the certificate?

You can get the digital proof of vaccination issued at the vaccination center or doctor's practice directly after getting vaccinated, or get it at one of the many issuing pharmacies.

How do I find an issuing pharmacy?

Most Berlin pharmacies are currently able to issue vaccination certificates. The online portal mein-apothekenmanager.de lets you search for issuing pharmacies near you: check the button "Covi-19 Impfzertifikat" in the drop-down menu "Seviceleistungen" under the search bar.

What documents do I need in order to get the certificate?

If you wanto to get the digital certificate issued at a pharmacy, you will need to show proof of vaccination via your paper vaccination certificate or vaccination passport and an official photo ID.

Which apps can I use to upload the vaccination certificate to my phone?

Vaccinated people have a choice: Both the Corona Warn App (CWA) and the CovPass app can save the certificates in the latest version by scanning the QR or barcode on the vaccination certificate. The apps save the certificate locally on the phone.

Both apps run on all current Android and iOS smartphones (operating systems from iOS12 or Android 6). They do not differ in the function of the proof. CovPass, however, does not have the contact tracking function of the CWA, which some reject.

What data is stored in the digital certificate?

According to the BMG, the vaccination certificate contains information on a person's vaccination status, vaccination date, vaccine, asl well as their full name and date of birth. The data collected is only stored for the creation of the certificate and then deleted. As with the yellow vaccination booklet, it is also a bad idea to share photos of the digital vaccination certificate on social media.

Is it possible to store multiple certificates in one app?

In addition to your personal vaccination certificate, the apps also allow you to store the certificates of other people, such as your partner and children. The QR code or barcode on the paper version of your digital certificate can be scanned as often as desired, meaning that you can store your certificate on several phones. This is practical if you lose your phone or get a new one.

Will digital proof of vaccination become mandatory?

Although you are not obligated to have your proof of vaccination in digital form, many places in Berlin with 2G entry restrictions - such as restaurants and movie theaters - require digital proof of vaccination or recovery.