Five million double-jabbed Brits who received the Covid-19 AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine have been issued a travel warning as the government prepares to provide an update on changes to the UK travel list.
More than 13 European destinations are refusing to accept certain batched of the vaccine which were made in India by Serum.
As many as 17 destinations are set to be added to the green list today and up to five million Brits will not have their vaccination status recognised across Europe.
It will mean some Birts may have to isolate for up to a fortnight despite a new vaccine "passport" being offered to people arriving in the UK from the US and the EU.
Portugal, a popular destination for Brits, has now scrapped quarantine rules for fully jabbed Britons.
Which batches are affected?
The EU still does not recognise a version of the AstraZeneca vaccine called Covishield, which is produced by the Serum Institute of India.
The doses were administered to up to five million people in the UK, but have not yet been approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA), which regulates vaccinations in the bloc.
UK tourists who have been given the Indian-made doses would be flagged up at the EU border and could face being denied entry.
The EU Digital Covid Certificate is now in operation to allow travel without quarantine, but it would not recognise the Indian-made AstraZeneca vaccines with the batch numbers 4120Z001, 4120Z002 and 4120Z003.
These also appear on recipient’s cards after being vaccinated and on the Covid travel pass on the NHS App, which is currently being used as a digital vaccination certificate for foreign travel.
The Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson and the AstraZeneca vaccine manufactured in the UK or Europe, sold under the brand name Vaxzevria, are currently the only EMA approved Covid-19 vaccines.
A spokesperson for the European Commission told the Daily Telegraph: “Entry into the EU should be allowed to people fully vaccinated with one of the vaccines authorised in the EU.
“Member States are… not required to issue certificates for a vaccine that is not authorised on their territory.”
The UK authorities have used the brand name Vaxzevria on all UK medical records where the AstraZeneca vaccine has been used, even if they are the Indian-made Covishield version.
As such, the versions of the vaccines are only identifiable by the batch numbers.
The Department of Health has reportedly not confirmed how many Indian-made AstraZeneca jabs have been administered in the UK, claiming commercial sensitivities, but it is thought that up to five million doses were imported from India earlier this year.
The Indian-made vaccines are currently not allowed by the EMA because no license has yet been sought for them.
India’s foreign minister and the chief executive of the Serum Institute of India has reportedly raised the issue with the EU.
UK travellers also face a similar problem to visit the United States, where no AstraZeneca vaccines have yet been licensed.
The EU vaccine passport is expected to integrate with the Covid travel pass on the NHS app.
Travellers will need to scan a QR code which will then provide information to the EU system, including a person’s name, date of birth and vaccination status, including which batch numbers they received.
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