From 1st October, people attending nightclubs, football matches or large gatherings such as music festivals in Scotland will be required to use a vaccine passport.

Recently announced by the Scottish Government, vaccine passports will be required for all ‘high risk’ events and large gatherings, and are intended to help monitor and track the spread of Covid cases as the country continues to open back up.

If you’re planning on attending large events over the autumn and winter period, you’ll need proof of vaccination. So how do vaccine passports work, and how can you get one?

How to get your vaccine passport

Vaccine passports will be available in both digital and paper format. To use a digital vaccine passport, you’ll first need to download the NHS Covid Status app, available via iOS App Store and Google Play Store from 30th September.

Through this app, users are able to download a digital copy of their vaccine status, which includes two separate barcodes for each dose of the vaccine, be that Pfizer, Moderna or AstraZeneca.

When attending an event such as a concert, for example, venue staff and/or event organisers are then able to verify an individual’s vaccine status by scanning these codes.

To do this, staff at relevant venues will be able to download a free verifier app to a smartphone or device. The verifier app was made available for businesses to download from the week beginning 13th Septmber, according to the Scottish Government website.

Long-term, venues will also have the option to integrate this verifier functionality into their own systems as the source code for the app is open source.

Prefer a paper copy? No problem

If you’d prefer to use a paper copy, that’s perfectly acceptable. In fact, if you’ve received both doses of the vaccine, it’s likely you may have already received your proof of vaccination record in the post.

Paper copies can be downloaded, printed and then used just like any digital vaccine passport. These also provide unique QR codes for each vaccine dose you’ve received and include additional security features, such as “un-editable” thermodynamic ink to prevent risk of forgery or tampering.

If you’ve not yet received a paper copy, or require a new document, these can be requested and mailed to you.

Where does your vaccine passport apply in Scotland?

According to information provided by the Scottish Government, the vaccine passport scheme will apply to the following ‘high risk’ settings:

• Nightclubs and analogous venues
• Sexual entertainment venues
• Live, unseated indoor events with at least 500 attendees
• Live, unseated outdoor events with at least 4,000 attendees
• All events where at least 10,000 attendees are present

Legal enforcement of the vaccine passport scheme will not come into effect until Monday 18th October, the Scottish Government revealed.

This two-and-a-half week grace period will allow venues to “test and adapt” their operations and premises to the new scheme.

Speaking today (28^th September), Deputy First Minister John Swinney said: “This is a very limited scheme and we hope this will allow businesses to remain open and prevent any further restrictions as we head into autumn and winter.

“The two-and-a-half weeks – effectively a grace period – before legal enforcement applies will allow businesses to test, adapt and build confidence in their own practical arrangements to comply with the scheme.”

Swinney added: “Scotland is not unique in introducing such an approach. Certification schemes are in place across Europe, including Ireland and France, and the Welsh Government is also planning similar measures.”

Medical Exemptions

Some of the key concerns surrounding the roll-out of vaccine passports have centred around people unable to receive the vaccine for medical reasons – where do they stand in all this?

Around one in 1,000 people across Scotland cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons, the Scottish Government estimates. The reasons for this are varied, and can include the risk of severe allergic reaction to the vaccine, or the fact that an individual is receiving end of life care.

The Scottish Government has emphasised that considerations will be made for those medically exempt, with the introduction of documents confirming exemption due to also be released.

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A statement on medical exemptions from the Scottish Government website reads: “Work is ongoing with vaccination experts, clinicians, Public Health Scotland, GP representative bodies, Data privacy and NHS Boards to finalise the process that will enable those who need an exemption to receive it as quickly as possible.”

Under 18s will also be exempt under the vaccine passport scheme, the Scottish Government confirmed.