Latest updates for Vaccinations and study abroad
June 2021
The Government of India aimed to universalise the Covid Vaccination drive to everyone by making it available to those above the age of 18 from 1st May, 2021 in Phase 3. This move has brought a sigh of relief to international students who wish to study abroad at their dream destinations. To further boost the drive, many states held special vaccination drives to provide the vaccine for international students, who have confirmed admissions to universities abroad on the 1st, 2nd and 3rd of June, 2021.
On 7th June, 2021, the Government of India released a set of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for those persons travelling internationally which stated that those vaccinated will have their Certificates from the CoWin website linked to their Passports to ease the restrictions on travel. These SOPs are set to benefit students travelling to attend their courses abroad, those travelling for international work purposes and India's contingent for the Tokyo Olympics.
As Covishield, produced by the Serum Institute of India and approved by the DCGI, is one of the approved vaccines on the WHO's list as on 3rd June 2021, the Centre has emphasised that the mention of Covishield on these certificates is satisfactory and will be accepted by the authorities.
The SOPs released by the Government are as follows:
Currently, the gap between the 1st and 2nd dose of the Covishield vaccine is set at 12-16 weeks interval (i.e., after 84 days), after administration of 1st dose by the National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for COVID-19 (NEGVAC).
In a latest update, the released guidelines are applicable to international students who require to travel overseas for their education abroad. The guidelines state that the concerned authorities will check if a period of 28 days has passed after the date of first dose and may reduce the time of administration of the second dose before 84 days, if the students have already began studying at universities abroad and need to undertake foreign travel for the purpose of education. Persons who require to travel abroad to take up jobs also fall under this eligibility criteria. Students are required to provide relevant travel documentation like Admission Confirmation letters, Unconditional Offer Letters or any associated formal communication.
For international student vaccination, students are advised to avail of the vaccination through their Passport, which is listed as one of the permissible ID documents on the CoWin website, so that the Passport number is printed on their Certificate. However, this is not insisted upon. Wherever necessary, the authority in charge may issue another certificate linking the vaccination certificate with the passport number of the beneficiary.
Students can avail of this facility for their international travel for the aforementioned purposes till 31st August, 2021.
In the coming weeks, the CoWIN system will provide a facility for administration of 2nd dose in such exceptional cases.
For further clarifications or information, get in touch with Edwise, India's Leading Overseas Education Consultants.
Back to All "Overseas Education Articles, Resources, Tips and Tricks"