Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, Social Insurance Institution of Finland
EU Digital COVID Certificate now available for people who have had COVID-19 and received one vaccine dose
The EU Digital COVID Certificate is now also available for people who have had COVID-19 and received one vaccine dose. They will be able to get the Certificate, which also serves as a COVID-19 passport, from the My Kanta Pages from 5 November 2021 onwards. The COVID certificate reader app will also accept this Certificate. Before travelling, it is important to check with the authorities of your destination country that the Certificate is accepted in that country.
The COVID-19 passport will now also be available to people who have had COVID-19 and received one vaccine dose. In these cases, the Certificate will contain the entry 1/1 under “Number in a series of vaccinations/doses”.
The EU Digital COVID Certificate can be used as a COVID-19 passport in Finland when seven days have passed from the vaccination. The COVID certificate reader app will also accept this COVID-19 vaccination certificate after seven days from the vaccination.
According to medical studies, people who have had COVID-19 and received one single vaccine dose are at least as well protected against the disease as those who have received two doses. For this reason, the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare and the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health consider that people who have had COVID-19 and received one vaccine dose should have the same rights to use the EU Digital COVID Certificate and the COVID-19 passport as those who are fully vaccinated.
Certificate of recovery can also be used as COVID-19 passport
People previously infected with COVID-19 who have received one vaccine dose may continue to use the EU certificate of recovery from COVID-19 also as the EU Digital COVID Certificate and the COVID-19 passport. This certificate will be valid for 180 days after the person has received a positive test result for COVID-19.
It is advisable to download the EU Digital COVID Certificate from the My Kanta Pages (www.kanta.fi) in advance and save it on your mobile phone as a PDF file or print it out on paper so that it is ready to be used as a COVID-19. People who do not use the My Kanta Pages can get the Certificate from the healthcare service.
In Finland, the COVID-19 passport serves as an alternative to COVID-19 restrictions.
Travellers must check requirements of their destination country
Before travelling, it is important to find out which EU Digital COVID Certificate is needed to cross the border of your destination country and how the Certificates can be used for other purposes in that country. The requirements of different countries may vary even at the EU’s internal borders. If you are planning to travel, it is good to check the COVID-19 situation in your destination country. It is also good to remember that travellers are required to undergo a mandatory COVID-19 test when they return to Finland, unless they can present the EU Digital COVID Certificate. People who have been tested before entry into Finland or upon arrival in Finland and those who are not fully vaccinated must also take a COVID-19 test 3–5 days after their arrival in the country. Tests are free of charge for those arriving in Finland. The obligation to show proof or be tested for COVID-19 does not apply to people under 16 years of age or people arriving from low-risk countries.
The Re-open EU website (reopen.europa.eu) compiles information on travel instructions and restrictions in place in the EU Member States.
Each Member State can decide what certificates they require from incoming travellers and how many vaccine doses the travellers need to have received. Some Member States may also require a certificate of recovery from COVID-19. Under the relevant EU Regulation, Member States must accept the EU Digital COVID Certificate if they accept other similar certificates.
Exercise special caution when travelling in general. The COVID-19 situation in different countries and regions may change abruptly.
Further information
Inquiries from the public about COVID-19 certificates in the My Kanta Pages
General advice
- My Kanta Pages customer service: [email protected]
- Note: The customer service for the My Kanta Pages cannot check or correct people’s personal health data. In such cases, please contact the healthcare unit that treated you.
Errors or shortcomings in COVID-19 certificates:
- Healthcare services: the organisation that administered the vaccine or conducted the COVID-19 test
Certificate requirements of foreign countries and the certificate practices of ship operators and airlines:
- the COVID-19 websites of the destination country or the website and customer service channels of the ship operator or airline
- Re-open EU (europa.eu)
More information for the media
We ask the media to contact the centralised communications channels of organisations according to the following division of responsibilities:
Social Insurance Institution of Finland (Kela): [email protected]
My Kanta Pages and the issuing of COVID-19 certificates in the My Kanta Pages
Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare: [email protected]
National Vaccination Register maintained by the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, registering by professionals, regional coverage of information, operating models in healthcare, vaccines administered abroad, paper certificates, validator app
Ministry of Social Affairs and Health: [email protected]
funding of the COVID-19 certificate, overall plan, technical specifications, legal issues, EU preparation, uses of the certificate, certificates as part of entry into the country, prevention of COVID-19 in cross-border traffic, model for entry into the country, practices in other countries, Communicable Diseases Act, government proposal on mandatory health checks at borders
Frequently asked questions and answers for operators on COVID-19, the related restrictions and the COVID-19 passport (avi.fi)
Information and frequently asked questions and answers on the COVID certificate reader, or the COVID-19 passport reader app (thl.fi)
Technical user support questions related to the reader app COVID-19 info, tel. +358 295 535535
Basic information about the COVID-19 passport (stm.fi)
More information about the guidelines and restrictions on travelling in EU Member States: Re-open EU (europa.eu)
Travel advice from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs (um.fi), in Finnish and Swedish
Guidelines of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health for the prevention of coronavirus (stm.fi)