PNG’s flag carrier, Air Niugini maintains that passengers travelling overseas must produce evidence at time of check-in that they have been fully vaccinated with Covid-19 vaccines.

In a press release, the airline said this was now a requirement for travel to most countries, including Papua New Guinea.

“Exemption from vaccination for children is dependent on the requirements of their destination country.

“Certificates valid for travel include (amongst others) the PNG International Certificate of Covid Vaccination (ICCV) , the WHO yellow card, the Australian Covid-19 Digital Vaccination Certificate, as well as compliant certificates issued by other countries,” it said.

The Green Card PNG Vaccination Certificate is not valid for international travel, as it does not include either the persons Date of Birth or their Passport Number, the airliner said.

“Passengers without any valid certificate of vaccination valid for travel cannot be checked in.

The PNG International Certificate of Covid Vaccination is available from PNG National Department of Health (NDoH) upon production of a copy of your green vaccination card and passport either to email: intvaccinecertificate@gmail.com or by visiting the NDoH office- Level 3 Aopi Centre in Waigani.

“The NDoH have been providing the capability for the ICCV to be issued at the airport prior to departure, but this has now ceased.

“Passengers travelling to Australia are required to complete a new “document” being the Australian Travel Declaration/ATD including as part of this an attestation (confirmation) that the passenger is fully vaccinated and the certificate is valid.

The ATD is a mobile phone App and available for download at the Apple iPhone Store for iPhone, and Google Store for Android phones.

Initial one-off entry of set-up information takes about 15 minutes, so it is recommended this is downloaded and updated prior to coming to the airport.

Manual paper forms will be available at check-in if required.