What are AstraZeneca India batch numbers and how to check them? Where was my AstraZeneca vaccine made and is it Covishield?
Millions are now thought to be unable to travel to Europe from the UK as a result of the European Unions requirements, which state that only vaccines approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) will be recognised on their Digital Covid Certificate scheme. The EU has rolled out a Digital Covid Certificate so travellers can prove their vaccination status in order to exempt them from quarantining when crossing an international border, but Fridays news surrounding the AstraZeneca vaccine rocked the country as many suddenly found their holiday plans put on hold. Sign up to our public interest bulletins - get the latest news on the Coronavirus Sign up to our public interest bulletins - get the latest news on the Coronavirus Sign up now Thanks for signing up! Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... In Scotland, a cumulative total of 2,121,593 people received a first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine, while for the second dose this figure stands at 1,787,039, as of July 1. (Image: AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)  Professor Adam Finn, of the UK Government's Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), described the exclusion of certain batches as an administrative hurdle that needs to be straightened out but that people should not be concerned that they are in some way less well protected. The coronavirus AstraZeneca vaccine was first created in the UK by Oxford University and British-Swedish pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca. There are three coronavirus AstraZeneca vaccine batches produced in India (Image: Getty Images)  But while the majority of batches have been produced in the UK, there are three batches of the AstraZeneca vaccine produced by the Serum Institute of India, with these known as Covishield rather than the UK-made version known and sold as Vaxzevria. The Pfizer, UK-made AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson and Moderna vaccines are all recognised by the EUs regulator  so those receiving these vaccines are permitted to travel to and across the EU without needing to quarantine as per the rules of the new Digital Covid Certificate travel scheme. It is thought that up to five million Brits could risk being barred from holidays in EU countries as a result of the move. If you received an AstraZeneca vaccine dose, you can find out which batch your jab came from by looking on your vaccination card  where the batch number will be indicated alongside the type of vaccine you received and the date of your vaccination. NHS app users in England and Wales can check their batch number on the app, which has been adapted for the purpose of allowing people to show proof of vaccination when travelling. To do so, users can log into the NHS App and locate the details of their vaccination, including batch number, by going to Get your NHS Covid pass and clicking through to their covid-19 records. For those living in Scotland, the COVID-19 Status Helpline can be reached on 0808 196 8565 and a vaccination status letter is also available to request for those travelling abroad by logging into their account with NHS Scotland here. The unique username for this account will have been given to you when you were given your first vaccine dose appointment. The numbers of the batches not approved by the European Union are 4120Z001, 4120Z002 and 4120Z003. But there is no actual difference between the two AstraZeneca vaccines, with the reason behind Covishields lack of approval by the EU regulator being that the Serum Institute did not seek approval in the EU. Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Professor Finn added that the batches are "exactly the same stuff". "We're in the early days of this new world of needed vaccine passports and there are lots of aspects of this that are still being sorted out for the first time. "But it's clearly, ultimately not in anyone's interest, including the European Union, to create hurdles that don't need to be there." A European Commission spokesman said that "entry into the EU should be allowed to people fully vaccinated with one of the vaccines authorised in the EU". He added that individual member states could also allow entry for people vaccinated with jabs on the World Health Organisation's emergency list. "This is the case for Covishield which is not authorised for placing on the market in the EU," he added. There are now reports that the Serum Institute is seeking emergency approval for Covishield vaccines. Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Friday said he saw no reason why people who received Indian-made Covishield vaccines should be left out of vaccine passport schemes after the European Union did not initially recognise it. "I see no reason at all why the MHRA-approved vaccines should not be recognised as part of the vaccine passports and I'm very confident that that will not prove to be a problem," Johnson said at a joint news conference with Angela Merkel, referring to Britain's medicines regulator.  Meanwhile, a Scottish Government spokesperson said: People should check the entry requirement for the country they are visiting before travelling. All AstraZeneca vaccines given in Scotland appear on the record of vaccination as Vaxzevria - EU/1/21/1529.  They added: A number of EU countries have already indicated they are happy to accept Scotlands record of vaccination where they want evidence that people have been fully vaccinated as a condition of entry. "We are not aware of any EU countries refusing to accept this statement.  Additional reporting by PA Deputy Political Editor Sam Bewlett  A message from the Editor:  Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by coronavirus impacts our advertisers.