IATA commended the European Commission for its leadership and speed in delivering the EU Digital COVID Certificate (DCC) and urged states to make it their global standard for digital vaccine certificates.
The DCC was delivered in record time to help facilitate the reopening of EU states to travel. In the absence of a single global standard for digital vaccine certificates, it should serve as a blueprint for other nations looking to implement digital vaccination certificates to help facilitate travel and its associated economic benefits.
Conrad Clifford, IATA’s Deputy Director General
The criteria
There are some criteria that a vaccination certificate must have to be effective and approved
- QR Code The DCC QR code can be included in both digital and paper formats. It contains essential information as well as a digital signature to make sure the certificate is authentic.
- Format: the DCC has the flexibility to be used in both paper and digital format
- Verification and authentication: EU Commission created a gateway to sign encrypted data and authenticate the certificate. The gateway can be also used to distribute encrypted data of non-EU certificate issuers other issuers. The EU has also developed a specification for machine readable Validation Rules for cross-country travel.
The EU DCC is valid in 27 EU member states and other certificates have been implemented among EU and Non-EU countries like Turkey, Switzerland, Ukraine. In the meanwhile the key criteria above work as a guide for the other countries’ certificates. World Health Organisation and IATA support it as a Travel Pass. Another benefit of the DCC is that it enables holders to access non-aviation sites in Europe that require proof of vaccination, such as museums, sporting events, and concerts
