Czechs returning from US have trouble getting their vaccine certificates recognised

Czechs vaccinated in the US with a vaccine officially recognised by the European Medicines Agency have been shocked to find out that their vaccine certificates are not recognised by their home country, Czech Radio’s flagship station Radiožurnál reported on Wednesday.

To pass the bureaucratic hurdle, some Czechs have had to resort to asking for another two vaccine doses in Czechia. According to sources in the report, members of the Health Ministry and of one of the diplomatic offices in Amercia have informally recommended that the affected do so. However, this has not been confirmed officially by the Health Ministry.

Daniel Dražan from the Czech Vaccinology Association told the station that getting four vaccine doses is not necessary. He added that there is currently no study that looks into what happens if an individual receives four doses.

Czech Health Ministry Spokeswoman Gabriela Štěpanyová told Radiožurnál that the European Union currently does not recognise vaccinations from so-called third countries and that such individuals have to follow the rules of the individual member states they arrive in. She said that the issue is currently being discussed.

According to the Czech Foreign Ministry, the country currently recognises vaccine certificates from Slovakia, Poland, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Slovenia and Croatia, as long as they show the individual received their first dose at least 22 days ago.