After the first vaccines rolled out in the last quarter of 2020, most nations set their plans of inoculating their citizens into motion as soon as possible. For South Korea, the quest to vaccinate and protect its citizens became the main priority. Today almost 80% of Korean citizens have gone through the full inoculation and with the country’s “living with COVID-19” policy, vaccine certificates have become an essential ticket back to normalcy.
However, this has somehow posed a dilemma for some international students who did not get vaccinated within the country. For those who got vaccinated in other countries, it was initially difficult to obtain a certificate of vaccination and somewhat impossible to get vaccinated in South Korea before they could return to their apartments in Seoul.
To address the situation, the South Korean government planned to expand its scope of accepted vaccine certifications which could be processed within their local district health centers. Overseas vaccines that are included in the expansion are as follows:
- Pfizer
- Janssen
- Moderna
- AstraZeneca
- Covishield
- Sinopharm
- Sinovac
Process of Overseas Certification
When registering for an overseas vaccine certification, you must of course prepare your landing card and passport. You must also bring the vaccination certificate from the country where your inoculation took place. Take note that they would always require you to finish at least 14 days after your second dose. Some health centers might also ask you to present your isolation proof or self-segregation book so it’s always advisable to call and ask before you go.
For travelers who got inoculated in China, you may open the WeChat app then search for the “International Version of Epidemic Prevention International Health Code”. You can then find “Entry for International Travellers: View and Show International Travel Health Certificate” and enter your information along with a face scan authentication process.
Once this process is complete, you can view your international travel certificate. You may then print the two-dimensional code or logo found in the upper right corner of the page and present this to the local health center along with your landing card and passport. The health center would ask you to fill up some forms with relevant types of information regarding your previous vaccination.
You may obtain your actual certificate from the CooV app which was designed for providing vaccination credentials. After downloading the app, you can simply select a language and your region, then modify other settings such as your password and mobile number. Everything will be completed once all of this is done and you have confirmed all the necessary information.
Important Reminders
It’s important to take note that you need a login certificate to access the CooV app. A hard copy or an SMS version of the login certificate would only be granted to you by staff from your local medical health center. If you wish to be inoculated in Korea, please be advised not to apply for overseas vaccination certificates.
This would deem you ineligible for other vaccinations within the country. After receiving your certificate, always confirm the proper inoculation dates of your first and second doses. This whole system is free of charge so always pay respect to the workers who are tasked to process your certification.
