COVID certificate

The COVID certificate provides documentary evidence that you have had a COVID-19 vaccination, have had and recovered from the disease or have tested negative. The Swiss COVID certificate system was discontinued on 1 September 2023.

Since 1 September 2023, the entire Swiss certificate system has definitively ceased operations (media release dated 16 August 2023, in German). It is no longer possible to issue COVID certificates. The COVID Certificate app and COVID Certificate Check app have also been shut down and removed from the app stores. For further information on the shutdown, please see the FAQ.

What is the COVID certificate?
The COVID certificate in the COVID Certificate app
The QR code and what it means
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

What is the COVID certificate?

The COVID certificate was a way of documenting that you have had a COVID-19 vaccination, have had the disease or have a negative test result. Since 1 September 2023, it is no longer possible to issue COVID certificates in Switzerland.

Besides the person’s first and last names, date of birth and a certificate number, the COVID certificate contains details of their COVID-19 vaccination, recovery, or negative PCR or rapid antigen test.

Below you will see examples of the COVID certificate for people who are vaccinated, have recovered, or have tested negative:

The COVID certificate in the COVID Certificate app

Existing certificates in the COVID Certificate app are only stored locally. It will therefore still be possible to display these in the app in a reduced form after the certificate system has shut down. For more information on displaying certificates in the app, please see the FAQ "What's going to happen to the COVID Certificate app?". All other functions in the app are no longer available.

Therefore, the certificates can still to be used for travel in the app or in another form - printed out, in the electronic patient record, as a PDF document or screenshot - until their technical validity expires (two years after being issued).

The QR code and what it means

The heart of the certificate is the QR code. Thanks to the electronic signature of the Swiss Confederation, this makes the COVID certificate forgery-proof and guarantees that it is genuine.

Please note: The QR code for each COVID certificate is technically valid for two years from the date of issue. Existing certificates can also still be used for travel if need be, as long as they comply with the destination country’s entry regulations and their QR code has technically not yet expired.