How Vaccine Passports for International Travel Will Work
2021-05-28
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1Visiting another country? You will need a passport and, probably, a digital vaccination document.
2Hoping to restore international travel, the European Union, some Asian governments and the airline industry want to create a vaccine passport.
3They are working on systems for travelers to use phone apps to prove they have been vaccinated.
4This will help travelers avoid local quarantine requirements when they arrive.
5The various efforts, however, show the lack of a central international system to check on vaccinations, either electronically or with paper documents.
6There are also questions about privacy and vaccine inequality.
7But many countries want them.
8The European Union (EU) and countries like Iceland have opened their borders to vaccinated visitors.
9Saudi Arabia will soon start permitting its vaccinated citizens to travel to foreign countries.
10Here is a look at how vaccine passports might work:
11The EU, China and Japan are working on their own digital vaccination documents for international travel.
12Britain updated its National Health Service app last week to let travelers prove they have been fully vaccinated.
13It comes just as travel rules are easing.
14The EU is testing a digital document to confirm COVID-19 test results or recovery from the virus.
15It is to start by the end of June.
16It is still unclear where and how exactly travelers in the EU will have their vaccine documents checked since there are no borders.
17Officials in Brussels say that question will be decided by each country.
18The idea is that travelers will show a QR code on their phones so it can be inspected at an airport or train station.
19Officials will check it against national databases.
20Travelers also need a phone app to show an official vaccination document.
21The EU's project includes free technology European countries can use to build their official documents.
22The airline industry organization, the International Air Transport Association, has its own IATA Travel Pass.
23Airlines including Qantas, Japan Airlines, Emirates, British Airways and Virgin Atlantic have agreed to use the app.
24CommonPass is another app being used by Cathay Pacific, JetBlue, United and Lufthansa.
25Right now, Travel Pass and CommonPass are only available to travelers on airlines that are using them.
26Both can be used with airline travel apps, so users can show they have been vaccinated when they check in online.
27Both also plan to be used with EU vaccine documents.
28CommonPass says users will be able to put in their vaccine information by mid-June.
29CommonPass head Paul Meyer said vaccine passports will only become more common.
30"Our expectation is it will remain a requirement for international travel," he said.
31Business travelers seem to like the idea of vaccine passports.
32Eymeric Segard is head of Geneva-based private jet company LunaJets.
33He believes vaccine passports will put an end to taking many COVID-19 tests while traveling.
34And he is not concerned with the possibility that vaccine documents might include personal information.
35"I would be happy to tell anybody, yes, I am vaccinated or no I'm not vaccinated," he said.
36Digital vaccination documents would be hard to falsify, unlike paper documents.
37IATA says it does not verify COVID-19 test results or whether travelers have been vaccinated.
38The organization adds that it will match travelers with their personal information of testing and vaccination sent from registered labs.
39There are checks to prevent identity theft.
40Some people fear that vaccine passports could be used to control people, restrict freedom and invade privacy.
41App developers, however, say very little information is kept on phones.
42"This doesn't bring an additional level of privacy risk," said Kevin Trilli, because it only requires a simple "yes" or "no."
43He is chief product officer at Onfido which is working on vaccination document technology.
44But it is still uncertain if the various vaccines passport systems will work together or whether countries will accept the documents of other nations.
45And what if each individual does not have a smartphone?
46IATA and EU officials say they are working on that problem.
47I'm Susan Shand.
1Visiting another country? You will need a passport and, probably, a digital vaccination document. 2Hoping to restore international travel, the European Union, some Asian governments and the airline industry want to create a vaccine passport. 3They are working on systems for travelers to use phone apps to prove they have been vaccinated. This will help travelers avoid local quarantine requirements when they arrive. 4The various efforts, however, show the lack of a central international system to check on vaccinations, either electronically or with paper documents. There are also questions about privacy and vaccine inequality. 5But many countries want them. The European Union (EU) and countries like Iceland have opened their borders to vaccinated visitors. Saudi Arabia will soon start permitting its vaccinated citizens to travel to foreign countries. 6Here is a look at how vaccine passports might work: 7Official efforts 8The EU, China and Japan are working on their own digital vaccination documents for international travel. Britain updated its National Health Service app last week to let travelers prove they have been fully vaccinated. It comes just as travel rules are easing. 9The EU is testing a digital document to confirm COVID-19 test results or recovery from the virus. It is to start by the end of June. 10It is still unclear where and how exactly travelers in the EU will have their vaccine documents checked since there are no borders. Officials in Brussels say that question will be decided by each country. 11The idea is that travelers will show a QR code on their phones so it can be inspected at an airport or train station. Officials will check it against national databases. 12Travel apps 13Travelers also need a phone app to show an official vaccination document. 14The EU's project includes free technology European countries can use to build their official documents. 15The airline industry organization, the International Air Transport Association, has its own IATA Travel Pass. Airlines including Qantas, Japan Airlines, Emirates, British Airways and Virgin Atlantic have agreed to use the app. CommonPass is another app being used by Cathay Pacific, JetBlue, United and Lufthansa. 16Right now, Travel Pass and CommonPass are only available to travelers on airlines that are using them. 17Both can be used with airline travel apps, so users can show they have been vaccinated when they check in online. Both also plan to be used with EU vaccine documents. CommonPass says users will be able to put in their vaccine information by mid-June. 18CommonPass head Paul Meyer said vaccine passports will only become more common. 19"Our expectation is it will remain a requirement for international travel," he said. 20What travelers want 21Business travelers seem to like the idea of vaccine passports. 22Eymeric Segard is head of Geneva-based private jet company LunaJets. He believes vaccine passports will put an end to taking many COVID-19 tests while traveling. And he is not concerned with the possibility that vaccine documents might include personal information. 23"I would be happy to tell anybody, yes, I am vaccinated or no I'm not vaccinated," he said. 24What about false documents? 25Digital vaccination documents would be hard to falsify, unlike paper documents. 26IATA says it does not verify COVID-19 test results or whether travelers have been vaccinated. The organization adds that it will match travelers with their personal information of testing and vaccination sent from registered labs. There are checks to prevent identity theft. 27Security and privacy 28Some people fear that vaccine passports could be used to control people, restrict freedom and invade privacy. 29App developers, however, say very little information is kept on phones. "This doesn't bring an additional level of privacy risk," said Kevin Trilli, because it only requires a simple "yes" or "no." He is chief product officer at Onfido which is working on vaccination document technology. 30But it is still uncertain if the various vaccines passport systems will work together or whether countries will accept the documents of other nations. And what if each individual does not have a smartphone? 31IATA and EU officials say they are working on that problem. 32I'm Susan Shand. 33The Associated Press reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for Learning English. Hai Do was the editor. 34______________________________________________________________ 35Words in This Story 36app - n. a computer program that performs a special function 37quarantine - n. the period of time during which a person or animal that has a disease or that might have a disease is kept away from others to prevent the disease from spreading 38QR code - n. A a type of matrix barcode this is a imachine-readable optical label that contains information about the item to which it is attached 39verify - v. prove, show, find out, or state that (something) is true or correct 40match - v. to make or see a connection or relationship between (two people or things) 41We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section, and visit our Facebook page.