The third (booster) dose of the COVID-19 vaccine has become available to all vaccinated Ukrainians aged 18 and over.

The Ministry of Health of Ukraine notes that regardless of which vaccine a person was vaccinated with (including a mixed scheme), the optimal revaccination period is from 6 to 9 months after the completion of the primary course of vaccination.

To date, about 14 million Ukrainians have received two doses of the vaccine.

For the booster dose, preference is given to mRNA vaccines – Moderna or Comirnaty from Pfizer-BioNTech. However, for those who received their first two shots with Sinovac Biotech's Chinese CoronaVac vaccine, a booster dose of Pfizer is recommended.

Booster vaccine for travel

Now the document on receipt of the full course of vaccination, which is issued by Ukraine, is valid for 365 days. However, it has already announced a revision and reduction of its validity period to 9 months – according to the EU recommendation.

After the introduction of the booster dose, you can receive a new COVID certificate, which will be valid for 270 days from the date of its introduction. It will be possible to generate it in the Diia app or on the Diia portal approximately at the end of January 2022. By that time, the certificate for preliminary full vaccination will be valid.

The European Union is actively revising the validity of COVID-19 vaccination certificates, which are presented when traveling to the EU and arriving from third countries. Most European countries are preparing to shorten the validity period of COVID certificates in February, so a booster dose of the vaccine will help keep free travel possible.

Some countries have already decided on new terms. For example, to enter Montenegro, a COVID certificate must be issued no more than 6 months ago, Austria requires a document no older than 9 months.

To check the current rules of entry to the selected country, use the VisitUkraine.Today portal – only verified information and round-the-clock customer support.