Digital Covid-19 certs: Letters begin arriving in homes this morning

Passengers at the departure level at Dublin Airport Terminal 1. File Picture: Colin Keegan/ Collins Dublin

People around Ireland have begun to receive their Covid-19 digital certificates in the form of a posted letter this morning. 

They are also arriving in email inboxes in the form of digital PDF files.

Twitter user Damien Mulley shared a screenshot of his letter this morning. 

*checks flights* pic.twitter.com/PvgXFxt5Nf

— Damïeñ Múlley 🏳️‍⚧️ 🇵🇸 (@damienmulley) July 13, 2021

There does appear to be early teething problems around the delivery of some of the certs, however, with some Twitter users reporting that they had to retrieve the email from the junk folder of their inbox.

Others have received more than one version of the same certificate.

Author Marian Keyes said the certificate sent to her belonged to someone else entirely. 

The first meeting of a working group made up of hospitality industry representatives and officials from the Department of Health and the Health and Safety Authority is scheduled to take place later this afternoon. 

Further clarity on some of the issues around the delivery of the Covid cert is expected following the meeting's conclusion.

Plans for return of indoor hospitality approved

The Government has said that fully vaccinated people will begin receiving their Covid certificates today to allow them enjoy an indoor meal or drink from next week.

Plans approved by Cabinet yesterday will allow many businesses to finally reopen after 15 months, but Tánaiste Leo Varadkar has conceded that forgeries of the certificates will exist, and the system is “far from perfect”.

It has been confirmed that bars, cafes, and restaurant owners will be the primary enforcers of the system which will only allow fully vaccinated people, those who have recovered from Covid-19 within the past six months, and accompanied minors to enter their premises.

Under the new laws, people caught with forged indoor dining passes could face a €2,500 fine and/or a month in prison. A premises could be fined up to €2,500 or could face being shut down if found to be non-compliant.

However, Government ministers admitted it will be for individual proprietors to self-police the rules.

Under the plans, gardaí will not be performing spot checks to verify if people are vaccinated once indoor hospitality reopens next week, and will only be called upon when a forgery is discovered or a premises has failed an inspection.

It has been confirmed that 350 HSE inspectors and 70 staff from the Health and Safety Authority will be granted powers to perform checks, but they primarily work office hours, ruling out any late-night checks.

Arts minister Catherine Martin. Picture: Gareth Chaney/Collins

Arts minister Catherine Martin, speaking after the Cabinet meeting, accepted that “forgeries do happen”, but the plan is about striking a balance between protecting the public from Covid-19 and allowing the sector to trade again.

“Unfortunately, forgery does happen," she said.

And we can't say that every single person who is in the bar is over 18, because forgery does happen. And so I'm not going to stand here with you and say it's 100% perfect. But if we were to seek perfection, then we keep our industries closed until September or October.” 

Under the plans approved by Cabinet, the following will happen:

• All fully vaccinated people and those who have recovered from Covid-19 will receive a certificate with a QR code to allow them to access indoor hospitality from next week;
• An exemption has been granted to allow under 18s to accompany their fully vaccinated parents/relations to an indoor setting;
• It is hoped that the system will be up and running before Friday, July 23, but Mr Varadkar said it would be “no later than Monday, July 26”;
• On arrival, inspections of certificates by bar staff will be visual only in the first instance, but an app to scan QR codes may come in at a later date.
• Time limits of one hour and 45 minutes will apply to indoor tables that are less than 2m apart.
• The measures are time-limited for three months, but the Oireachtas can extend them if required. The plan involves three phases, with phase two to allow those with negative PCR tests to enter, and phase three will see the use of antigen testing commence;
• Service will be limited to table service only. No nightclubs or dance halls are permitted to open yet.

The measures also allow unvaccinated staff to eat a meal before or after work in the premises, amid claims of discrimination against young people. Foreign visitors will also be able to access indoor hospitality if they have proof of being fully vaccinated. 

Health minister Stephen Donnelly will sign regulations to allow NHS certs to be accepted.

While Mr Varadkar said the system is potentially open to abuse, he said he believes there will be a high degree of compliance with the new regulations.