Worried your COVID-19 vaccine won’t be accepted abroad? Here’s what you need to know

If you got mixed doses or a certain brand of AstraZeneca, you may face obstacles while travelling

RCI

Fully vaccinated and ready to travel? Before booking your trip, make sure your destination recognizes your COVID-19 vaccine. As some Canadian travellers have already discovered, not all COVID-19 vaccines are considered equal. 

Here’s the latest on which vaccines distributed in Canada might cause problems for travellers abroad.

Mixed dose woes

Some countries won’t recognize travellers with mixed vaccine doses as being fully vaccinated, which could create problems for the millions of Canadians (new window) whose doses don’t match.

The issue first surfaced when travellers with mixed doses, including Chris Storey, of London, Ont., discovered they would have to quarantine when visiting Barbados — because they weren’t considered fully vaccinated.

It’s very frustrating; it’s ridiculous, Storey told CBC News (new window) earlier this month.

Barbados announced on July 25 that it was reversing its vaccination policy by recognizing travellers with mixed COVID-19 doses.
PHOTO:  CBC

However, Barbados then reversed its policy (new window) to recognize travellers with mixed doses.

But nearby Trinidad and Tobago has yet to change its policy on mixed vaccines (new window). The country will only allow visitors with a mix of AstraZeneca and Pfizer to skip quarantine. Any other combination is not recognized there.

The government of Trinidad and Tobago did not answer questions about the reasons for its policy.

U.S. position on mixed doses

The United States also doesn’t approve of mixing COVID-19 vaccines — with some exceptions.

COVID-19 vaccines are not interchangeable, Centers for Disease Control (CDC) spokesperson Jasmine Reed said in an email. The safety and effectiveness of receiving two different COVID-19 vaccines has not been studied.

However, the CDC says mixed doses of the two mRNA vaccines (new window), Pfizer and Moderna, will be accepted in exceptional situations, such as when the vaccine used for the first dose was no longer available.

• Ontario asks Ottawa to work with WHO on ensuring mixed vaccines recognized abroad (new window)

The CDC’s position won’t affect Canadians entering the U.S. by air, as they only have to provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test (new window).

But those with mixed doses could potentially find themselves shut out of land travel if the U.S. imposes a vaccination requirement when it reopens its side of the Canada-U.S. land border to travellers.

Bryan and Sandra Holgate, of Osoyoos, B.C., may have to cancel their upcoming cruise because Bryan has a mix of Pfizer and Moderna vaccine doses. His cruise line doesn’t recognize people with mixed shots.
PHOTO: SUBMITTED BY BRYAN HOLGATE

The CDC’s position is already creating problems for some Canadians who have booked cruises that dock in the U.S.

Norwegian Cruise Line (new window) (NCL) is not recognizing people with any kind of mixed doses as being fully vaccinated. Several other cruise lines (new window) aren’t recognizing those with a mix of AstraZeneca and an mRNA vaccine.

Bryan Holgate, of Osoyoos, B.C., is booked to take a transatlantic cruise on NCL in November. But Holgate said he will have to cancel next month — when his full payment is due — if the cruise line maintains its current vaccine policy.

We have a final payment at the end of September — and we’re talking $20,000, said Holgate, who has a mix of Pfizer and Moderna.

[NCL] says absolutely, categorically, that a Pfizer-Moderna mix is not acceptable. That … took my breath away.

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Canadians with mixed doses may also be barred from certain U.S. venues where state rules require proof of vaccination.

Large-scale indoor concerts (new window) in New York City next month — such as The Eagles and An Evening with Lady Gaga and Tony Bennett — require audience members be fully vaccinated.

The New York State Department of Health said it follows CDC guidelines and does not consider people who have a mix of AstraZeneca and an mRNA vaccine as being fully vaccinated — at least not for now.

It’s important to keep in mind that CDC COVID-19 vaccine recommendations may be subject to change in the future as additional data becomes available, said department spokesperson Samantha Fuld in an email.

Europe and AstraZeneca’s COVISHIELD

Canadians heading to Europe who got one version of the AstraZeneca vaccine may encounter a different problem.

Europe has approved (new window) Vaxzevria, the European-manufactured version of AstraZeneca, however, it has yet to authorize COVISHIELD, the Indian-made version of the same vaccine.

As a result, several European countries don’t recognize COVISHIELD, including Italy (new window), Portugal (new window) and Poland (new window), according to their government websites.

Consequently, Canadian visitors to those countries who got that particular vaccine can’t take advantage of privileges offered to fully vaccinated travellers, such as being exempt from quarantine or a COVID-19 test.

More than 80,000 Canadians (new window) have at least one dose of COVISHIELD.

• Trudeau says AstraZeneca recipients will ‘not be disadvantaged’ when they travel (new window)

Fortunately for those Canadians, the list of European countries accepting the vaccine is growing. According to the BBC (new window), several popular destinations, such as Spain (new window), Greece (new window) and Iceland (new window), accept COVIDSHIELD. France (new window) joined the pack last week.

The United Kingdom also recognizes COVISHIELD (new window). However, fully vaccinated Canadians travelling to the region still must quarantine — no matter what type of vaccine they have. Although the U.K. now exempts (new window) fully vaccinated Americans and Europeans from quarantine, it has yet to extend the same privilege to Canadians.

We are taking a phased approach to restarting international travel while protecting public health, said a U.K. Department for Transport spokesperson in an email.

Will the rules change?

Canadians shouldn’t get too worked up over differences in vaccine acceptance, says Regina-based infectious disease physician Dr. Alexander Wong.

It’s clear that the world is going to have to figure something out, he said. People will just kind of need to be a little bit patient.

The Canadian government says it’s working with its international counterparts to resolve vaccine differences.

Over the next number of weeks and months, there may be revisions provided by health authorities around the world with respect to these vaccine regimes, Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc said at a news conference last week.

Dr. Alexander Wong believes countries will eventually work out their vaccine differences.
PHOTO: ALEXANDER WONG/SASKATCHEWAN HEALTH AUTHORITY

In June, Canada’s National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) changed its vaccine guidelines (new window) to condone mixing COVID-19 vaccines, based on emerging research that found mixing AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines was both safe and effective.

Wong believes the U.S. will soon bend its stance on mixing vaccines, too.

Looking at, for example, the U.S. and Canada, and how important that border is, I suspect it’s going to get figured out sooner rather than later, he said.

• Government working with other countries to recognize Canadians with mixed doses as fully vaccinated (new window)

Wong also predicts the COVISHIELD problem will soon be resolved, because there’s no difference between it and the AstraZeneca vaccine manufactured in Europe.

It’s literally the exact same thing, he said. It just happens to be manufactured in India.

What about getting a 3rd dose?

This week, the Quebec government (new window) stated it’s offering a third vaccine dose to people who have an essential trip planned to a country that doesn’t recognize their vaccination status.

People affected by these exceptional situations will be advised on the relevance of receiving an additional dose according to their situation and their needs, Quebec Ministry of Health spokesperson Marjorie Larouche said in an email.

• EXCLUSIVECanada recommends mixing and matching AstraZeneca, Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines (new window)

CBC News asked the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) for its take on third doses. The agency replied that NACI — which advises PHAC — does not make recommendations on vaccination requirements for travel.

Canadians are reminded to avoid non-essential travel outside of Canada, said PHAC spokesperson Anne Génier in an email. Now is not the time to travel.

Sophia Harris (new window) · CBC News