The Covid vaccines that will get people into Australia

Not all international arrivals will get the same treatment depending on their Covid jab. See list of vaccines that make the cut and those that don’t.

As Australia prepares to re-open its borders and allow foreign students to return the medicines regulator has ruled on which international vaccines it will recognise under a Covid vaccine passport system.

Citizens and permanent resident who have had these vaccines will be able to enter the country once borders reopen under a one-week home quarantine scheme.

The changes are also a major step to reopening the market to international students.

The TGA has approved four vaccines for use in Australia and travellers who received these will be considered fully vaccinated.

The approved vaccines are Pfizer’s Comirnaty, AstraZeneca’s Vaxzevria, Janssen’s Covid-19 Vaccine and Moderna’s Spikevax.

The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) assessed another six vaccines available overseas but not in Australia and agreed to recognise only two – Sinovac made in China and Covisheild made in India.

The regulator has not yet recognised Russia’s Sputnik V jab, China’s Sinopharm and Cansino shots, India’s Covaxin.

International students from China and India could be considered vaccinated if they had the Sinovac or Covishield Covid vaccines.

Travellers who received the unrecognised shots will have to serve two weeks quarantine and receive another round of vaccines in Australia to be considered fully vaccinated.

The regulator based its decision on a review of clinical studies showing how each vaccine offered protection against severe disease or hospitalisation if they developed Covid.

To be considered fully vaccinated with Comirnaty, Vaxzevria and Spikevax a person must have had two doses at least 14 days apart, or received a single dose of Covid-19 Vaccine Janssen.

To be considered fully vaccinated with Sinovac and person must have received two doses administered 14-28 days apart.

To be considered fully vaccinated with Covishield a person must have received two doses at least two weeks apart.

In addition at least 14 days must has elapsed since the second shot allowing the vaccine time to work and produce an immune reaction.

WHICH OVERSEAS VACCINES HAVE BEEN APPROVED

Chinese-developed Sinovac (CoronaVac) Covid-19 vaccine (Photo by RYAD KRAMDI / AFP)

Coronavac (Sinovac)

Efficacy

Average Vaccine Effectiveness against symptomatic infection of 64 per cent

Vaccine Efficacy against hospitalisation of 90 per cent.

Dosage

Two doses administered 14-28 days apart.

TGA ruling

“Based on regulatory, published and preprint data this suggests the efficacy of Coronavac is comparable to the Australian-approved vaccines, although marginally lower in protection against symptomatic infection.”

TGA thus considers that the Coronavac (Sinovac) vaccine is a “recognised vaccine”.

Where is it used?

China Thailand, Cambodia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, Paraguay, Egypt, Libya, Oman, Turkey, the Ukraine

Who else recognises it?

Fifty other countries recognise the Sinovac vaccine including Austria, Indonesia, Switzerland, South Africa, Brazil, Greece, Finland.

Covishield (AstraZeneca/Serum Institute of India)

This is the form of the AstraZeneca vaccine used in Australia that is manufactured in India by the Serum Institute of India.

Efficacy

Average Vaccine Efficacy against symptomatic infection is 65 per cent

Efficacy against severe infection and/or hospitalisation is 85 per cent

Dosage

Two doses at least two weeks apart.

TGA ruling

“Two major global regulators, the UK Medicines and Health products Regulatory Agency and Health Canada have provided regulatory approvals for the AstraZeneca vaccine manufactured by the Serum Institute of India. These regulators are recognised in regulation as “Comparable Overseas Regulators” by the TGA.”

TGA considers that the Covishield (AstraZeneca/Serum Institute of India) vaccine is a “recognised” vaccine.

Where is it used?

Approved for use in over 44 countries including the UK, Argentina, Brazil, Canada and the Ukraine.

Who else recognises it?

Fifteen countries in the EU have recognised it for vaccine passport purposes.

VACCINES NOT RECOGNISED BY THE TGA

BBIBP-CorV (Sinopharm China)

Developed by Beijing Institute of Biological Products

Efficacy

Average Vaccine efficacy against symptomatic infection of 65 per cent.

Vaccine Efficacy against hospitalisation has not been estimated.

Dosage

Two doses more than two weeks apart.

TGA ruling

“Based on published and preprint data this suggests that the efficacy of BBIBP-CoV against symptomatic infection is slightly lower than Australian-approved vaccines, and there is currently no assessment of protection it offers against severe-infection/hospitalisation.”

TGA thus considers that BBIBP-CorV (Sinopharm) not be a “recognised vaccine” at this stage, because of the absence of information on severe infection/hospitalisation.

Where it is used?

Approved in over 50 countries including China, the UAE, Dubai, Bahrain, Hungary

Problems

Some studies have found the vaccine does not work well in people aged over 50, others showed antibodies to Covid dropped by 70 per cent five months after the second shot. However clinical studies showed antibodies surged sevenfold after a third shot was given.

Covaxin

Vaccine produced by Bharat Biotech in India

Efficacy

Average Vaccine Efficacy against symptomatic infection of 78 per cent.

Average Vaccine efficacy against hospitalisation of 94 per cent

Dosage

The standard schedule of Covaxin is two doses administered 28 days apart.

TGA ruling

It hasn’t been listed by the World Health Organisation which has just begun reviewing clinical evidence for the vaccine The TGA said the clinical studies for the vaccine have not yet been peer reviewed or published in a major medical journal and the TGA has not yet been provided with a regulatory dossier about the vaccine it “has not reached a conclusion on whether Covaxin be a “recognised vaccine”.

Where is it used?

It has been authorised in nine countries around the world. Guyana, Iran, Nepal, The Philippines, Zimbabwe.

Countries that have approved it for vaccines passports

Greece and Estonia

A woman receives a dose of the Sputnik V (Gam-Covid-Vac) vaccine against the coronavirus disease at a vaccination point in the Abylkhan Kasteyev State Museum of Arts of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Picture: AFP

Sputnik V

Produced by Gamaleya Institute, Russia

Vaccine efficacy

Average Vaccine Efficacy against symptomatic infection of 92 per cent

Average Vaccine Efficacy against hospitalisation of 100 per cent.

Dosage

Two doses three weeks apart

TGA Ruling

“Because this is only a single study, and we have not yet been provided with a regulatory dossier, TGA has not reached a conclusion on whether Sputnik V be a “recognised

Where it is used?

Not yet approved by the World Health Organisation but is used in more than 70 countries including Russia, Argentina, Brazil, India, Iran, Lebanon, Mexico, the Philippines, Serbia, Turkey

Convidecia

Made by Chinese company Cansino

Efficacy

Unknown

TGA Ruling

“There are currently no published or preprint studies on which to base an assessment of the efficacy of Convidecia and the TGA has not yet been provided with a regulatory dossier.

Because there is insufficient data to evaluate the efficacy of the vaccine, TGA has not yet reached a conclusion on whether Convidecia (Cansino) should be a “recognised vaccine”.

Originally published as The Covid vaccines that will get people into Australia