I have my EU Covid Certificate from France issued end of October 2021 for my recent Xmas trip to Paris.
I have another trip to Switzerland end of June for 2 weeks. Will my EU Covid Certificate issued in France be recognized and valid for Switzerland or will I need to apply for a Swiss Covid Certificate? I’m My current certificate shows I am triple vaxxed with 3rd dose 10/15/2021.
I realize that regulations and restrictions can change on a dime between now and June.
I am confused about these EU Covid certificates that people keep talking about. Do we need a special certificate going to Europe? I thought our CDC card was enough.
Run…reported to webmaster to run away.
I just fussed with this as we need to go to Switzerland next week. After a lot of puzzling through websites, it actually turned out to be face-palm easy. If your French COVID certificate is electronic, just download the Swiss COVID Cert app. Transfer your French cert to the Swiss app by opening both apps and scanning the French QR code with the Swiss app. It adds the certificate seamlessly. Or, if you have a paper certificate from France, it should also have a QR code. Just scan it with the Swiss app.
I am assuming you have a smartphone.
It’s not impossible that you could enter Switzerland by displaying the French app or paper plus a negative test. The websites are unclear, they just say that if you hold an EU certificate, you don’t need to go through the process of applying for a Swiss certificate and paying the 30CHF fee. But we’re not taking any chances as our daughter’s university kept insisting she will have to show a SWISS certificate to get into her exams. So now she has a Swiss certificate by just scanning her Italian certificate into the Swiss app. Well we all do, as we are going with her and also wanted to be extra sure we would not be denied entry.
If your question was simply “how long is the certificate good for”, Switzerland currently says it’s good for 365 days since last vaccine dose, so in your case Oct 14, 2022. So either way, I think you are good to go for entry into Switzerland but I’d still convert your French certificate to the Swiss app just as a belt-and-braces preventive measure.
Don’t forget your negative test on top, of course. PCR within 72 hours or antigen within 24 hours of entry.
EDIT: adding the Swiss COVID certificate information link for ease of reference
@Anne: different story for you. Switzerland is not a member of EU and has added a step that most EU countries haven’t. You need to apply for a Swiss certificate in advance, so they have a chance to evaluate your vaccination credentials before you arrive. It is done online, and you need to upload pdf copies of your CDC card, passport and proof of stay (e.g., hotel confirmation,) pay 30 CHF and submit. Within five days (usually less), if approved, you will get a pdf file with a QR code that you show to get into Switzerland and to get into any indoor venues. So that would be your Swiss Covid certificate. A similar process is/was required for France, at least when Chris came at Christmas. I’m not up to speed on French entry requirements if they have changed.
Chris’ question was how to convert an EU certificate to a Swiss certificate, as he’s already been through that process in France. My answer is that he does not have to apply for a Swiss certificate, he can convert the French one he has at no charge.
Outside of Switzerland and maybe France, most EU countries accept the CDC card as proof of vaccination for Americans. This is why it’s so difficult to keep on top of changing requirements - each country can set its own rules, not EU or Schengen countries as a bloc.
P.S. those are the facts - my opinion is that this process is actually good for you, not just a PITA. If you have the QR code, you won’t have any restaurant owners or security guards squinting at your CDC card many times a day, trying to understand if it’s valid or not. You will have the standard QR code, they have the standard QR code reader, beep and you’re in. It simplifies your life and theirs, and should reduce the stress of your visit.
@Nelly….. thank you so much for your detailed response…..it is very helpful. Yes we applied for our EU certificate online before France changed the process. We did have to send pdf’s of our passports, vaccine cards, plane and hotel reservation……same as what Switzerland is asking for. We received a pdf of our Covid certificate, downloaded the Tous Covid app and scanned the QR code to our phones and our watches…..very handy using the watch and heard a lot of ‘oo la la’s ‘ when we presented our code on our watches.
Another friend secured her French Health pass as well however it was before she had her 3rd shot so when she showed her EU cert….it showed as invalid…..fortunately she had her CDC card which noted her booster. As of right now France considers fully vaccinated when you have your booster ( 3rd shot) .
@Anne…every country has their own requirements for a Health Pass which allows you to enter hotels, museums, transportation, bars and restaurants and stores…..without it you can not enter. We did need a negative PCR or antigen test at least 48 hrs prior to departure to France and all documents need to be shown to get your boarding passes. We tried to use VeriFLY as we flew AA but it just did not work for us so we went to ticket counter to show our docs and received our BP. To fly home to US we needed a negative antigen test one day before departure from France.
I have to say testing in France is everywhere and it is really easy to get an antigen test for 30 euros…..wish it were so here.
My advice is to stay on top of Covid requirements for your chosen destination (s) as they can change….France went thru several iterations so far.
The only other snag might be with updating either the French or Swiss credentials. By June they likely will be out of date, since most countries are requiring boosters and establishing effectivity periods (6 or 9 months after your last shot). If both systems allow for updating, as opposed to re-applying, then great.
Thanks for all the info on this. Right now only grease and Ireland are on my 2022 list. Hopefully I won’t need any of those extra certificates. I appreciate all the help!
Chris, ooh la la indeed. What a great use case for a smartwatch.
I’d be curious to hear if the French app to Swiss app conversion went as easily as my Italian app to Swiss app one, or if there was a gotcha I didn’t know about.
@Nelly….I have not yet attempted to scan my French Pass to the Swiss Covid app…. Our trip starts on June 30….. I want to wait a bit given requirements change.
