People can start applying for the Taiwan Digital COVID-19 Certificate from 8am today, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said yesterday.
Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the center, said people can apply online at https://dvc.mohw.gov.tw for the certificate, which has been recognized by the European Commission as equivalent to the EU Digital COVID Certificate.
The Taiwanese digital certificate would be issued mostly to people who need to travel abroad, he said.
Photo courtesy of CEEC
As of Wednesday last week, 60 countries and territories — including 27 EU member states — have joined the EU’s digital certificate system, meaning that Taiwanese digital certificate-holders can use it in those places, the CECC said.
The US also recognizes the EU system as proof of COVID-19 vaccination for people traveling to the US by air, while the International Air Transport Association (IATA) has announced that the EU certificate and can be linked with the IATA Travel Pass as proof of vaccination.
Ministry of Health and Welfare Department of Information Management Director Parng I-ming (龐一鳴), who is deputy head of the CECC’s information management division, said that countries that joined the EU system have mutually recognized COVID-19 certificates, which contain a QR code with a digital signature to ensure it is valid and authentic.
Parng said the certificate also meets three requirements of the EU General Data Protection Regulation: minimum exposure of personal data, right to data portability and right to be forgotten.
People can present the certificate in digital or paper form, either by downloading it onto a device such as a smartphone or printing it out.
The Taiwanese certificate does not display a holder’s ID card number, he said, adding that essential information, such as names, birthdates and vaccination or test status, is verified by scanning the QR code.
The code can be validated offline, so that necessary information remains on the certificate and is not stored or retained when a certificate is verified in a visited country, he added.
Parng said that people can apply for the certificate in three steps, but it is only available to people who have a valid passport.
First, Taiwanese must provide their passport number, along with one of three other identification methods: a national ID card number and National Health Insurance (NHI) number; a Citizen Digital Certificate; or a Fast Identity Online authentication ID, he said.
Foreigners must provide their unified identification number on their Alien Resident Certificate, along with either one of the three other IDs: an NHI number, entry-and-exit permit number or passport number, he said.
Second, an applicant selects whether they want to be issued a “vaccination certificate” or a “test result certificate,” Parng said.
Third, they choose to download the certificate or print it, he said, adding that the site can also generate a serial number for users to print a certificate at a convenience store.
Information on how to apply for the digital certificate can be found on the ministry’s Web site at https://covid19.mohw.gov.tw/ch/np-5345-205.html.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
COLD FACTS: ‘Snow skin’ mooncakes, made with a glutinous rice skin and kept at a low temperature, have relatively few calories compared with other mooncakes Traditional mooncakes are a typical treat for many Taiwanese in the lead-up to the Mid-Autumn Festival, but a Taipei-based dietitian has urged people not to eat more than one per day and not to have them every day due to their high fat and calorie content. As mooncakes contain a lot of oil and sugar, they can have negative health effects on older people and those with diabetes, said Lai Yu-han (賴俞含), a dietitian at Taipei Hospital of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. “The maximum you can have is one mooncake a day, and do not eat them every day,” Lai