Certification, boosters and travel
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Last updated: 16 November 2022
This section provides information for COVID-19 vaccine clinical trial participants about taking up the NHS offer of COVID-19 vaccine booster doses. It also provides information for people who need to obtain COVID-19 vaccine doses, in addition to their clinical trial doses, in order to travel internationally.
Depending on whether your participation in a study has finished (i.e you are no longer attending visits), or if you are currently taking part in a study which is active (have study visits and contact with the study team remaining), you will need to take different steps.
Study participants should fall under one of two categories:
- Your participation in a COVID-19 vaccine study is complete
- Your COVID-19 vaccine study is currently ongoing
a) My participation in a COVID-19 vaccine study is complete
This applies to participants if your study has no remaining scheduled visits or planned interactions with the study team.
If this applies to you, you can take up the offer of a COVID-19 vaccine booster from the NHS. Visit the NHS website to discover if you are eligible to book a COVID-19 vaccine booster appointment.
If you plan to travel internationally to an area that has a vaccine criteria for entry, you should check that you have had a primary course and booster vaccine(s) which are acceptable. Otherwise, you should check that you could meet any alternative criteria they stipulate (such as testing prior to entry).
Depending on what you have already received, it may be possible for you to obtain an additional vaccine dose from a vaccine centre in order to meet their criteria (please see below for details).
b) My COVID-19 vaccine study is currently ongoing
This applies to you if you have scheduled visits still taking place in your study and that you are in regular contact with your study team.
Your study team will advise you on if you need to take up an additional COVID-19 vaccine dose, whether this is for protection as a booster or for international travel.
Scottish vaccine study participants can view full details on the Scottish NHS Inform website.
Welsh vaccine study participants can view a written statement on the Welsh Government website.
In Northern Ireland, letters have been issued to trial participants advising them to contact their trial team to discuss options.
Boosters
If you plan to travel internationally to an area that has a vaccine criteria for entry, you should check that you have had a primary course and booster vaccine(s) which are acceptable. Otherwise, you should check that you could meet any alternative criteria they stipulate (such as testing prior to entry).
Adult participants over 18-years-old are potentially eligible to receive additional doses of vaccination if required for international travel purposes (that is if individuals need to to demonstrate they have received COVID-19 vaccinations in order to enter the country they are travelling to).
If a study is still active (i.e. there are still visits or other interactions planned with the trial team), the participant will likely need to withdraw from their study in order to take up such additional doses. Information and advice can be gained from the clinical trial team for such individuals on an active clinical trial.
If your study has finished (no remaining scheduled visits or planned interactions with the study team) you can take up the offer of a COVID-19 vaccine booster from the NHS. Visit the NHS website to discover if you are eligible to book a COVID-19 vaccine booster appointment.
Depending on what you have already received, it may be possible for you to obtain an additional vaccine dose from a vaccine centre in order to meet their criteria.
In line with the wider booster programme in England, three months or longer will generally be required between a COVID-19 vaccine dose and a subsequent booster. If you are offered a booster as part of a clinical trial, there may be a shorter interval.
If you choose to have a top-up course, the relevant dose interval will be at least 8 weeks. This is the standard interval that the JCVI (Joint Committee on Vaccines and Immunisations) has recommended.
Most countries allow entry with evidence of full initial vaccination and only a few require evidence of a recent booster. We appreciate that some clinical trial participants had their booster earlier than the rest of the population and that this may now be an issue for travel.
It is best to check entry requirements that are likely to apply for when you travel, as these are changing frequently. Alternative arrangements such as PCR testing are usually available as an alternative.
NHS COVID Pass
For clinical trial participants who receive a top-up vaccine(s), their NHS COVID Pass will show their trial vaccines and their top-up vaccines. The top-up vaccines will appear in the NHS COVID Pass 1-5 days after each dose has been administered. There may be a longer delay in the NHS COVID Pass showing your clinical trial vaccine, but this should not get in the way of travelling (which will be based on the top-up booster rather than the study vaccine).
Many countries will only accept vaccinated travellers 14 days after a dose has been administered; however, this time period can vary from country to country.
If you intend to travel internationally, you should confirm the entry requirements of your destination country using the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office travel advice website as requirements for vaccination can vary from country to country.
Booster doses are visible in the NHS COVID Pass and are labelled as booster doses. If you received a Pfizer booster vaccine and want it to contribute towards your travel top up, you can contact the Vaccine Data Resolution Service via 119 to have this dose coded as a primary course vaccine. This can only be done with Pfizer booster doses.
We do not recommend you receive additional vaccines until you have been invited to do so by your clinical trial site, or by the NHS if your study is no longer on-going (i.e. there are no further planned visits or other interactions with the trial team).
If you have had additional vaccines and are still on an active study, please inform your trial team at your next appointment (or earlier if you have any clinical concerns) as this is vital information for your safety and for the trial data.
Frequently asked questions
We would encourage people to stay in their clinical trial and inform the study team of any booster vaccines you receive, and continue to attend follow up appointments. The longer people are in clinical trials, the more data can be gathered, and the earlier the clinical trials can complete, and hopefully produce more data on effectiveness of the vaccines.
Yes, we encourage everyone to take up the offer of a flu vaccine when it is offered to you. However, some studies may request you to not have another vaccine in the few weeks before or after your study vaccine and so a flu vaccine may need to be slightly delayed (depending on the study). Please check with your study team if you are not clear, and also subsequently inform them that you have had a flu vaccine.
We are sorry that some participants have had difficulties with foreign travel plans and in some cases, have had to incur additional costs for PCR tests for example. However, we have no control over the entry requirements set by other countries. The NHS does not cover tests for people wishing to travel abroad.
In certain circumstances, for a small number of studies, you may be able to reclaim certain additional costs for PCR tests for travel from the trial organiser. Please check with your clinical trial site. They are also working with international organisations and other countries on their entry criteria.
If you have further questions about vaccine studies please visit our frequently asked questions page or visit approved vaccine studies.
You can find more information about other types of COVID-19 research.
