NATIONAL HEALTH MISSION

General Hospital Junction,Thiruvananthapuram 695035

Tel fax: 91-471 2301181, 2302784
email: smdnrhm@gmail.com
Website: www.arogyakeralam.gov.in

NATIONAL HEALTH MISSION

CIRCULAR
Draft #59 of File NHM/3821/ADMIN1/2020/SPMSU Approved by State Mission Director on 29-May-2021 12:28 AM - Page 1

Circular No: Dated, Thiruvananthapuram, 29.05.2021

NHM/3821/ADMIN1/2020/SPMSU

Sub:- Guidelines for issuance of CoVid-19 certificate for persons travelling abroad
Ref :- G.O.(Rt).No.1155/2021/H&FWD dated 28.05.2021

As per the GO cited in Ref 1, State government has given directions regarding COVID vaccination and
issuance of COVID vaccination certificate for persons travelling abroad(Annexure I). In this regard
following guidelines are issued to assist the districts in the implementation of the Government Order:

1. State Issued COVID vaccination Certificate.

1.1 Those beneficiaries (above 18 years) who are travelling abroad and wants to get the State Issued
COVID Vaccination certificate, with Passport number and/or vaccine name added (in case of
Covishield) as mentioned in GO must apply for the same
through https://covid19.kerala.gov.in/vaccine/ . Detailed process for application is given in Annexure
II. Beneficiaries may apply for Final/Provisional certificate based upon their current vaccination status
by uploading the relevant documents supporting the same. Beneficiaries who have taken Covaxin and
wants certificate with passport number added to it can also apply.
1.2 Applications thus submitted will be verified by the concerned District Medical Officer/ Officer
designated by DMO and the application will be approved/rejected. Once approved digital certificate will
be issued, and Beneficiary will get an SMS confirmation regarding the same. Certificate can then be
downloaded from the portal (https://covid19.kerala.gov.in/vaccine/).

2. Verification/ Approval of request for certificate

2.1 District Medical Officer is authorised as the competent authority to issue the certificate. DMOs may
identify a dedicated team ably guided by RCHO, to ensure the issuance of certificate in a time bound
manner. Detailed process for verification and approval of application is given in Annexure III.

3. Provision of 2nd Dose of Covishield at 4-6 weeks interval

3.1 Those beneficiaries (>18 years), who are partially vaccinated and are yet to complete 84 days
after first dose of Covishield, but needs the completion of vaccination schedule for travelling abroad
may apply for priority vaccination through the eHealth portal with documents supporting immediate
travel and can get vaccinated at 4-6 weeks interval after first dose, once the application is approved
and subsequently scheduled for vaccination by District RCHO.
3.2 As the second dose of Covishield is administered before the prescribed time interval of MOHFW,
GOI (12-16 weeks), it will not be possible to document the same in CoWIN portal. Hence a separate
 register must be maintained in Covid Vaccination Centres to document such vaccinations and a
certificate must be issued by the Medical officer of the concerned CVC in the format given
in Annexure IV.
3.3 Beneficiary may then apply for State issued Final certificate through the portal as mentioned in
Point 1.1.
3.4 Covishield procured by State through other than GOI channel may be used for vaccinating such
beneficiaries.

4. 2nd Dose of Covishield for those who have taken first dose from abroad.
Draft #59 of File NHM/3821/ADMIN1/2020/SPMSU Approved by State Mission Director on 29-May-2021 12:28 AM - Page 2

4.1 In case of beneficiaries who took first dose of Astrazeneca vaccine from abroad and are currently
due for second dose (completed 84 days), they may be administered with one dose of Covishield after
registering such beneficiaries for Dose 2 in CoWIN through Vaccinator module, documenting the
necessary details of first dose.
4.2 If such a beneficiary has not completed 84 days, but needs vaccination at 4-6 weeks interval, then
he/she must follow the steps described in points 3.1- 3.3.

5. First dose of COVID Vaccine for people going abroad

5.1 Beneficiaries who are planning to go abroad and are yet to receive first dose must register in
CoWIN using Passport as ID card type so that Passport number gets documented in CoWIN
certificate.
5.2 While scheduling the beneficiaries who have applied for priority under “going abroad” category,
Districts may preferably allot them to Covishield sessions, as of the two vaccines, Covishield and
Covaxin, only Covishield is currently approved by WHO and accepted by most of the foreign countries.

6.The Additional Director ( FW) shall ensure sufficient training to all concerned and monitor
implementation of the Government Order on a daily basis.

Dr.Rathan U. Kelkar IAS

State Mission Director

Approval Valid
Digitally Approved By
Dr.Rathan U. Kelkar IAS
Date: 29.05.2021
Reason: Approved
 File No.HEALTH-F2/31/2020-HEALTH-Part(20)

ANNEXURE I

GOVERNMENT OF KERALA
Abstract
Health & Family Welfare Department – Vaccination for persons travelling
abroad – instructions issued – orders issued
HEALTH & FAMILY WELFARE(F) DEPARTMENT
G.O.(Rt)No.1155/2021/H&FWD Dated,Thiruvananthapuram, 28/05/2021

Read 1 G.O.(Ms).No.85/2021/H&FWD dated 29.04.2021

2 G.O.(Ms).No.1102/2021/H&FWD dated 19.05.2021
3 G.O.(Rt).No.1114/2021/H&FWD dated 24.05.2021
ORDER
COVID-19 vaccination drive has entered Phase III from 1 st May
2021 wherein all beneficiaries aged 18 years and above has to be vaccinated
and as per the Government order read as 1st above, Government have decided
to give free vaccinations to all citizens in the age group of 18-45 years.
Further, as per the Government order 2 nd read above Government have
notified 32 categories as Front Line Workers for prioritization for COVID-19
vaccination in the age group of 18-45 years as the first lot. Further, as per the
Government order 3rd paper read above, Government have additionally
notified 11 categories as Front Line Workers for prioritization for COVID-19
vaccination in the age group of 18-45 years as the second lot which includes
students / others going to foreign countries, for whom vaccine is compulsory.
2. Many countries have stipulated that a valid COVID vaccination
certificate is mandatory for issuance of travel clearance and only those
certificates with Passport number mentioned in it are accepted by the foreign
countries during verification. As per the current settings in CoWIN portal, the
details of ID proof which was used at the time of registration in CoWIN will
be documented in the COVID vaccination certificate. It is seen that most of
these beneficiaries have used aadhar / other IDs rather than Passport during
the registration in CoWIN and during the verification process at the time of
vaccination. Hence passport number is not documented in the COVID
vaccination certificate which is issued by MOHFW through CoWIN portal.
This has resulted in a peculiar situation wherein many persons are unable to
get travel clearance for going abroad.
 File No.HEALTH-F2/31/2020-HEALTH-Part(20)

3. In case of Covishield, the certificate is not considered valid as many

countries are demanding certificate with brand name as “Oxford Astrazeneca
Vaccine”. In addition, as per the new schedule prescribed by Government of
India, 2nd dose is to be taken at 12-16 weeks interval after first dose. This
sudden change has derailed the travel plans for many as they had decided their
travel based on the old schedule of 4 - 6 weeks. In all these cases, travel
process will be initiated only on production of vaccination completion
certificate. Many beneficiaries are at the risk of losing their job if they don’t
report to work place within the stipulated time frame. Further, most of the
countries have not included Covaxin in the approved COVID vaccine list and
hence those who have taken Covaxin are facing hindrance in getting travel
clearance.
4. All these issues were brought into the notice of Government of India,
to make provisions in CoWIN for permission to include passport details in
CoWIN. It was also requested to give permission to the State Government to
issue vaccination certificate with changes till provisions are made available in
CoWIN. Further, it was requested to permit beneficiaries going abroad to take
Covishield as per the previous schedule of 4 – 6 weeks and to make provisions
in the CoWIN portal to document such vaccination given at 4 - 6 weeks.
However, no orders/ letters are received from Government of India so far.
5. In the above circumstances, Government have pleased to issue the
following directions:
1. Government of Kerala will issue certificate in the prescribed format
(annexed to this Government order) wherein passport number will be
recorded and vaccination certificate issued to a person who wishes to go
get travel clearance and requires such certificates.
2. The District Medical Officer is authorised as the competent authority to
issue such certificate of vaccination in the prescribed format.
3. Since WHO has already cleared Covishield, the same may be given as
preference to people travelling abroad.
4. A person who has taken Covishield and wishes to get travel clearance
will be eligible for 2nd dose of Covishield vaccine after 4 to 6 weeks of
the previous schedule. Since currently COVID portal does not permit to
administer the 2nd dose of Covishield within a period of less than 12
weeks, this is to be recorded separately by the districts.
5. Covishield vaccine will be provided from the vaccine procured by the
State.
6. Districts are to verify any of the under-mentioned documents while
providing vaccines in such instances to ensure that the vaccines are
administered to eligible persons only
a. Live visa
 File No.HEALTH-F2/31/2020-HEALTH-Part(20)

b. Admission document for students

c. Document of Job confirmation / work permit
7. Destination countries policy may also be checked whether vaccination is
mandated.

(By order of the Governor)

RAJAN NAMDEV KHOBRAGADE
PRINCIPAL SECRETARY
To:
The State Mission Director, National Health Mission, Thiruvananthapuram.
The Project Director, e-Health, Thiruvananthapuram.
The Director of Health Services, Thiruvananthapuram.
The Director of Medical Education, Thiruvananthapuram.
Chief Executive Officer, NORKA Roots
NORKA Department
All District Collectors
All District Medical Officers.
Information & Public Relations (Web & New Media) Department
Stock File / Office copy
Forwarded /By order
Signature Not Verified
Digitally signed by SHEENA PAUL
Date: 2021.05.28 15:19:46 IST
Reason: Approved

Section Officer
copy to :Special Secretary to Chief Secretary
PS to the Honb ,le Chief Minister
PS to the Honb ,le Minister(Health)
PA to principal Secretary (Health)
 ANNEXURE II 1

USER MANUAL
FOR
COVID-19 VACCINATION
CERTIFICATE REQUEST
 2

1. Overview
Citizen going abroad who needs vaccination completion certificate from Government of
Kerala can raise request through this new option. Citizens have to fill the request form and
upload related documents and submit. These request forms will be verified by the district
teams and will be approved or rejected. If approved, vaccination certificate could be
downloaded from same portal.

2. Process Flow

1. Citizen going abroad have to download the final certificate from COWIN which is available only if
two vaccinations are taken.
2. eHealth request form will be filled and required documents will be uploaded.
3. District team will verify request details and the documents and will approve or reject the
request.
4. Certificate will be downloaded by citizen from porta, if approved.
 3

3. Pre-requisites
1. COWIN Final Vaccination Certificate
2. Travel documents like Passport, Visa, Admission Letter from a Foreign University, Offer
Letter, Work Permit, Permanent Residency Certificate etc. of foreign countries as the case
may be.

4. Covid-19 Vaccination Certificate Request

3. Type below URL in any browser in your computer.
https://covid19.kerala.gov.in/vaccine/
4. Select “VACCINE CERTIFICATE (FOR GOING ABROAD)” option.

5. Enter COWIN registered mobile number and COWIN registration number

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6. Enter OTP and Validate

7. If successfully validated you will get the below screen.

 5

8. Read the direction and click the close button.

9. Fill request form
a. Select the name of vaccine administered to you as in COWIN Certificate.
b. Select the ID proof as mentioned in COWIN
c. Enter the ID Proof No
d. Enter Passport Number and Name as in Passport.
e. Enter your district and email id.
f. Upload the ID Proof (as selected in (b) above)
g. Upload the your COWIN certificate, downloaded from cowin.gov.in
h. Upload relevant pages of Passport as a single document
i. Upload Travel documents like Passport, Visa, Admission Letter, Offer Letter,
Employment Letter, Work Permit, Permanent Residency Certificate etc. of foreign
countries as the case may be.
10. Enter “Aadhaar Number” and “Name As In Aadhaar” and validate with Aadhar.
 6

11.

12. Received Aadhar OTP have to verified before submitting.

 7

13. Once OTP is verified successfully, request submit button will be enabled for submission

14. After clicking the submit button, Your application will be submitted and registered.
 8

5. Covid-19 Vaccination Certificate Download

➢ Once the certificate request is approved / rejected after official verification an SMS will
be send to the registered mobile number mentioning the status of the application. If
approved it could be downloaded after login using mobile number and COWIN number

➢ Enter mobile number and COWIN reference number.

 9

➢ Verify the OTP received.

 10

➢ After OTP verification citizen can download the certificate from the download certificate
button.

Certificate Format
 11

➢ If citizen is not able to download the certificate, he/she can mark as “Report Issue”.
➢ Citizen can enter the faces issue as brief comment and submit.
12
 1

USER MANUAL
FOR
COVID-19 VACCINATION
CERTIFICATE REQUEST
PROCESSOR
 2

1. Overview
Citizen going abroad who needs vaccination completion certificate from Government of
Kerala can raise request through this new option. Citizens fill the request form and upload
related documents and submit. These request forms will be verified by district team and
approved or rejected. Approved certificate can be downloaded from portal.

2. Process Flow

1. Citizen going abroad have to download the final certificate from COWIN.
2. eHealth request form will be filled and required documents will be uploaded.
3. District team verify the documents and request details and approve or reject.
4. Certificate will be downloaded by citizen from portal.
 3

3. Login
1. Type below URL in any browser in your computer or mobile.
https://covid19.kerala.gov.in/vaccineapp/
2. Login page will be displayed.
3. Separate username and password will be given to certificate request review team
in each district.
4. Enter your username and password.
5. Click “Login”
 4

4. Pending Certificate Requests

➢ All vaccination certificate request coming to the distrcit will be listed in this common pool.

➢ Each user can add the requests to their “My Certificate Pending List” screen.
 5

5. My Certificate Pending List

➢ User can open each request and verify the uploaded documents with request
information’s.
➢ Following verifications to be done:
o Verify whether submitted information is matching with Cowin Certificate.
o Verify the submitted information is matching with Passport details.
o Verify the passport, visa validity, other supporting documents like Admission
Letter from a Foreign University, Offer Letter, Work Permit, Employment Letter, Permanent
Residency Certificate etc. of foreign countries.
➢ Once verified and found OK, the user can mark “ID proof matched”, “Name
matched”, “Age matched”.
After these three are marked only then status can be selected as approved.
➢ User can select the status in the action column dropdown. This will have option to
“Approve”, “Reject”, “Pending”.
➢ Notification SMS will be sent to requested citizen.
➢ All pending requests that is allocated for a user can be moved back to common pool
by clicking “Transfer All Requests To Common Pool”. You can either submit all applications
with updated status or transfer all application back to main list.
 6

6. Generate Report
➢ Option to generate requested date wise report is available.
➢ Dashboard to analyze total request received and status wise count is available.
 7

7. SMS Notifications
➢ SMS will be sent to requested citizen once request is approved or rejected by district
health team.
 Annexure IV
Provisional Certificate for Covishield 2nd Dose

Beneficiary Details

Name

Age

Gender

Passport Number

Cowin Reg No.

Vaccination Details

Dose Date of administration Place of administration

(CVC Name)
Dose 1

Dose 2

Batch No (Dose 2)

Name of the Medical Officer issuing certificate:

Designation:

Signature of Medical officer

Office Seal

* This certificate is issued for the purpose of applying for State Issued COVID 19 vaccination certificate only.
 Annexure V
Frequently asked Questions
1. Who can apply for State Issued COVID 19 Vaccination Certificate?
a) Any beneficiary (>18 years) who has taken COVID 19 vaccine (Covishield/
Covaxin) and now wants Passport number to be included in the certificate for the
purpose of travelling abroad can apply.
b) Any beneficiary who has taken Covishield, but wants the vaccine name documented
as “Oxford-Astrazeneca” vaccine, as per the policy of visiting country.
c) A beneficiary can apply for final/provisional certificate based on the current
vaccination status

2. How can I get the State Issued COVID 19 Vaccination Certificate?

For getting the certificate please apply for the same at

https://covid19.kerala.gov.in/vaccine/ Detailed steps are given in Annexure II.

3. Will I get the certificate as soon as the application is submitted?

No. Once the application is submitted, it will be verified by the District

Medical Officer. Once the application is approved, certificate can be downloaded.

4. How will I know that the certificate is Issued?

Once the application is approved, you will get an SMS alert in the registered
mobile number notifying the same. After that you can download the certificate from
https://covid19.kerala.gov.in/vaccine/

5. What should I do if my application is rejected?

If the application is rejected, then you will receive an SMS alert saying the
reason for rejection. You may then do the necessary correction and reapply, if
eligible.

6. I have taken Covshield Dose 1, but have not completed 84 days since then. But
my visiting country is demanding Vaccination completion certificate. Can I get
my 2nd Dose earlier?

Yes, State government has decided to give the second dose of Covishield in
such cases as per the precious schedule ie at 4-6 weeks interval.
7. What should I do to get my 2nd dose earlier?

You must apply for priority vaccination at

https://covid19.kerala.gov.in/vaccine/. Documents proving the immediate travel
must be uploaded during the time of application.

8. Will I get a Final certificate from CoWIN if I take 2nd dose of Covishield earlier?

No, final certificate from CoWIN will not be generated in such cases, at this
point of time, as the current guideline is to give two doses 12-16 weeks apart. Instead,
you will be given State Issued COVID 19 certificate. However, if Ministry makes
provisions for marking the second dose before 84 days in CoWIN for people going
abroad, this can be facilitated.

9. How can I get my State Issued certificate in case I took my second dose earlier?

You must put up another request at https://covid19.kerala.gov.in/vaccine/ for

getting the certificate after taking Dose 2. The provisional certificate issued by medical
officer at the time of administration of Dose 2 in the format given in Annexure IV, must
also be uploaded in such cases.

10. I have taken first dose of Astrazeneca vaccine from abroad and have now
completed 84 days after first dose. Can I take second dose from State now?

Yes , you can take second dose of Covishield from State. At the vaccination centre,
you will be registered for Dose 2 and details of first dose will be captured in CoWIN and
you will get a final certificate from CoWIN once current vaccination is marked.

11. I have taken first dose of Astrazeneca vaccine from abroad and have not
completed 84 days after first dose. Can I take second dose before 84 days as
completion of schedule is mandatory for return travel?

Yes, you can take second dose of Covishield from State. Please apply for priority
vaccination with documents of first dose,as said in Question 7 and later apply for
certificate as said in Question 9. CoWIN certificate will not be generated in this case.