Travel Health Pass Excerpts from Transport COVID-19 Response Insights Situation Report
9 April
We have prepared a short briefing for Minister Hipkins, at his request, on the Travel Health Pass
Work Programme this week and will provide you with a copy of this. A more detailed briefing is
being prepared for a joint COVID-19 Ministerial Meeting (the meeting has now been postponed with
the date TBC). However, we will still provide the briefing to Minister Hipkins on 15 April 2021. We
are currently working with your Office to confirm whether you are scheduled to attend the future
meeting, and will submit the briefing through you for Ministerial consideration.
We are planning another cross agency workshop for the week of 19 April to dive into the key
component parts of a health pass end to end, and specifical y the mechanics of it in and around the
border. We wil update you on the outcome of the workshop once completed.
12 March
Travel pass and green travel ers
Through a series of workshops, we have confirmed the content of Travel Health Pass programme,
including work areas and agency leads to progress the work areas identified. The programme itself
takes an end-to-end look at a passenger’s journey, and focuses on the role of traveller health
certificates in facilitating travel in and out of New Zealand. The aim of this work is to position New
Zealand to be able to move when the health science says it is safe to do so, recognising that
international connectivity remains fundamental to the economic and social wellbeing of New
Zealanders. We acknowledge there are significant unknowns about the role and impact of vaccines,
and New Zealand is not expected to reach domestic vaccination targets until late 2021. Advice to
Ministers is expected by the end of March confirming the work programme, timing of advice over
the coming months and key considerations and dependencies that Ministers wil need to be aware
of, and decision points.
We hosted a cross agency session on 11 March with Air New Zealand and the International Air
Transport Association (IATA) to hear more about the IATA Travel Pass and Air New Zealand’s
upcoming pilot. The trial provides an important opportunity for Air New Zealand to test the
technology that underpins the IATA Travel Pass, and it intends to trail this on a small group of crew
and passengers on the Auckland to Sydney Route in mid April (timing to be confirmed).
The IATA Travel Pass is built it in modules as an industry solution based on open-source standards. It
can be used in combination with other providers or as an end-to-end solution. Importantly, it
appears to be able to sufficiently blend a person’s COVID-test status (and in future vaccination
status) with their identity (passport). However, government to government assurance process
associated with that credential (how it is pushed from an individual to the appropriate government
authorities for the purpose of travel) is a key issue that needs to be worked through.
Border measures, restrictions, internal affairs and resurgences
Digital vaccine passports continue to be a big point of discussion as the world looks to reopen both
domestically and internationally. There is a consistent theme of concerns being considered in the
planning and roll out: privacy/security concerns in relation to data, equity/discrimination concerns
given that some people cannot get vaccinated and many developing countries are struggling to
procure vaccines, and rights concerns in relation to people who do not want to be vaccinated.
However, Israel, Australia, the UK, the EU, China, and Denmark are all either planning or have
already rolled out versions of a vaccine passport, and IATA, IBM, and the World Economic
Forum/The Commons Project have all produced technologies and are undergoing trials with airlines
and countries. While the goal for many is to have a universal/coordinated platform that can be used
globally, the range of different “passports” and the differing goals of jurisdictions is making this
difficult.
5 March
Through a series of workshops, we have confirmed the content of Travel Health Pass programme,
including work areas and agency leads to progress the work areas identified. The programme itself
takes an end to end look at a passenger’s journey, and focuses on the role of travel er health
certificates in facilitating travel in and out of New Zealand. The aim of this work is to position New
Zealand to be able to move when the health science says it is safe to do so, recognising that
international connectivity remains fundamental to the economic and social wellbeing of New
Zealanders. We acknowledge there are significant unknowns about the role and impact of vaccines,
and New Zealand is not expected to reach domestic vaccination targets until late 2021. Advice to
Ministers is expected by the end of March confirming the work programme, timing of advice over the
coming months and key considerations and dependencies that Ministers wil need to be aware off,
and decision points.
We are hosting a cross agency session on 11 March, with Air New Zealand and the International Air
Transport Association (IATA), to hear more about the IATA Travel Pass and the pilot that Air New
Zealand will be trialling in the coming month. We will report back following that session in next
week’s insights sitrep. The IATA Travel Pass is one of a number technology solutions being trial ed
globally to transmit a passengers pre-departure testing results and, in the future, vaccination status.
The key issue that States, and international standard setting bodies are grappling with, is:
• how to blend, including digital y, a person’s test and vaccination status with their
identity for the purpose of travel; and
• the government-to-government assurance process associated with that credential.
Border measures, internal affairs and resurgences
Digital vaccine passports continue to be picked up by jurisdictions as an approach to allow them to
reopen both internal y and with a longer-term eye for international easing of restrictions. Israel has
produced an internal “green pass” required for access into facilities which have been reopened. New
South Wales, after closely monitoring Israel’s approach, has produced an app that 75% of its
population have downloaded which will allow a similar reopening of indoor venues and events. The
Australian government has signalled it will likely require a vaccination certificate for international
travel and the Danish government has said it too would introduce a “digital passport.” The UK and
the EU are both considering a similar thing, with the EU’s “Digital Green Pass” proposal covering
vaccine information as well as other supplementary information which will allow non-vaccinated
people to meet other requirements. Concerns from EU members as well as the UK about vaccine
discrimination have been raised after backlash in Israel where many non-vaccinated people are
unable to access the same facilities as vaccinated people and where other proposed legislation
relating to mandatory 48-hour testing for non-vaccinated people and allowing identification of non-
vaccinated people to authorities is on the cards.
26 February
Travel pass and green travel ers
The Ministry has developed a draft programme for the traveller health certificate work stream, that
will be tested with agencies at an interagency workshop at the goal publicly announced by the Prime
Minister is for quarantine-free travel to commence by the end of the first quarter.
12 February
Travel pass and green travel ers
The Ministry hosted an interagency workshop on Wednesday 10 February 2021 on the concept of
health or vaccination certificates to facilitate “green travellers” in and out of New Zealand. We will
continue to update you and seek direction from Ministers as the work evolves.
Border measures
While it is unclear whether vaccinations will mean countries automatically ease/remove border
restrictions, many countries are contemplating the idea of vaccination certificates for international
travel and how it might look/work.
The Danish government has said it would introduce a “digital passport” in the next few months and
it is on the radar for many other countries, with Australia recently indicating that it is “highly likely”
that a vaccination certificate will be required for internationals to enter Australia.
With the industry desperate to reopen, many players have been proactively working on technologies
to help. These are intended to provide safe, secure, and coordinated verification of both vaccines
and tests as well as information about countries’ requirements and vaccine/test sites:
• As previously reported, IATA has been working on its Travel Pass for months and has airlines
(including Emirates, Etihad, Qatar Airways, IAG, and Copa Airlines) and the Panamanian
government on board for trials/use.
• CommonPass, from the World Economic Forum and The Commons Project, is currently in
trials and provides a similar service.
• IBM is developing its “digital health pass”, built on blockchain technology
The main chal enge seems to be creating a universal, secure and, inclusive document/app.
5 February
Travel pass and green travel ers
Fol owing our 28 January 2021 update to you on the concept of health or vaccination certificates to
facilitate “green travellers” in and out of New Zealand, the Ministry will host an interagency
workshop on Wednesday 10 February 2021 to identify the policy and operational questions and
shape the work programme. We will continue to update you and seek direction from Ministers as
the work evolves.
29 January
Travel pass and green travel ers
On 28 January 2021, we provided you with a briefing that responded to the Prime Minister’s request
for information on the International Air Transport Association (IATA)’s Travel Pass initiative. The
briefing also covers work being started by a Government agency group on the concept of health
certificates to facilitate “green travellers” in and out of New Zealand more broadly. Agencies will
work together over the next few weeks to shape the work programme. We wil continue to update
you and seek direction from you and your colleagues as the work evolves.
22 January
Border-Related
IATA has announced progression on its “Travel Pass” which, globally, will:
• provide travellers with a registry that outlines countries’ health requirements
• provide a registry of authorised testing/vaccination centres for travellers to meet these
requirements
• enable these testing/vaccination centres to securely send result/verification certificates to
travellers, and
• enable travellers to verify their meeting of countries’ travel requirements with relevant
certificates that can be shared online with airlines prior to check in.
Emirates and Etihad have just become two of the first airlines to pilot this. Both will use it to validate
the negative pre-departure PCR tests they require (Emirates on flights to Dubai and Etihad on all of
their flights).
Such a platform that specifically assists passengers, airlines, and authorities to track these testing
and vaccination travel requirements, and verify them being met, can reduce confusion, increase
compliance, and assist countries to be comfortable in reopening borders, which is key in the global
recovery.
