As countries begin to relax restrictions amid the global COVID-19 vaccine rollout, sometimes the brand you received matters if you need to travel.

Some countries may not allow you to enter if you’ve been injected with certain vaccine brands, such as Chinese-made Sinovac, which comprises the bulk of the Philippines’ vaccine supply.

Is your COVID-19 vaccine recognized by your destination country? Check this list. 

This article will be updated as more pieces of information come in.

Saudi Arabia

Beginning June 16, all non-Saudi passengers and their companions traveling to Saudi Arabia need to register with the government at this website before departing. 

According to the Philippine Airlines and Saudia Airlines, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia lists the following authorized vaccines for inbound travelers:

• Pfizer-BioNTech
• AstraZeneca
• Moderna
• Johnson & Johnson

However, on May 26, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said that overseas Filipino workers who received the Sinovac jab could still enter the Kingdom, but they would undergo quarantine.

The departure date for Saudi Arabia needs to be at least 14 days after the traveler gets his or her last dose. Travelers should keep their vaccination cards at all times during their stay in the country.

Qatar

According to the Philippine embassy in Doha, inbound travelers to Qatar will need to have been fully vaccinated with the following brands beginning July 12:

• Pfizer-BioNTech
• AstraZeneca
• Moderna
• Johnson & Johnson
• Sinopharm (“conditionally approved”)

The Philippine embassy’s advisory says travelers from the Philippines who have not been vaccinated with these brands can still enter, but will be subject to an RT-PCR test and quarantine for 10 days.

This will also apply to those who received the recognized brands, but their date of arrival falls short of the 14-day period after the last dose.

Kuwait

Starting August 1, non-Kuwaitis are allowed to travel to Kuwait if they have a valid residency permit and have been fully vaccinated with the following brands:

• Pfizer-BioNTech
• Moderna
• AstraZeneca
• Johnson & Johnson

Europe

The European Union Delegation to Malaysia said on July 7 that all individuals who had been vaccinated by World Health Organization-approved vaccines may enter Europe.

These are the vaccines for which the WHO has issued an emergency use listing, as of June 1:

• Pfizer-BioNTech
• AstraZeneca
• Moderna
• Johnson & Johnson
• Serum Institute of India
• Sinovac
• Sinopharm

Thailand (Phuket)

Tourists entering Thailand under the government’s Tourism Sandbox Program must be fully vaccinated with vaccines registered with the Thai Food and Drug Administration (FDA), or with vaccines approved by the WHO. 

As of June 29, Phuket is the only designated province for this program.

These are the vaccines approved by the Thai FDA, as of June 24:

• Pfizer-BioNTech
• AstraZeneca
• Moderna
• Johnson & Johnson
• Sinovac
• Sinopharm

This vaccine requirement is specified for the Tourism Sandbox Program. Check with your employers if certain vaccines are needed upon entry for workers.

Papua New Guinea

These are the vaccines recognized by Papua New Guinea before entry into their country:

• Pfizer-BioNTech
• AstraZeneca
• Moderna
• Johnson
• Sinovac
• Sinopharm

Not just vaccine brands

For some countries – like the United States, the United Arab Emirates, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Singapore – do not require certain vaccine brands for now, but have protocols for presenting negative COVID-19 test results. Some may additionally require a quarantine period.

Note that a vaccine brand is not the sole requirement for eligibility to travel to certain countries. Some governments have a list of “green countries,” or countries the destination allows travelers to originate from. There are also ongoing travel bans.

Check if your destination country has the Philippines listed on its travel bans as well.

– Rappler.com