The Ontario government is making enhanced COVID-19 vaccine certificates with QR codes available for download beginning this week, based on birth month:

• October 15, 12:00 a.m. to 11:59 p.m.: All individuals born between January and April can download their QR codes.
• October 16, 12:00 a.m. to 11:59 p.m.: All individuals born between May and August can download their QR codes.
• October 17, 12:00 a.m. to 11:59 p.m.: All individuals born between September to December can download their QR codes.

At a press briefing on Friday, Premier Doug Ford noted that the QR code system will allow businesses the comfort to keep operating safely.

“They mean we can continue to get back to doing things we want without losing the gains we’ve made,” Ford added, noting that the objective is to avoid further lockdowns.

In advance of October 22, we are making the enhanced vaccine certificate with official QR code available for download.

If you were born between January and April, download your enhanced vaccine certificate today!
✅Easy
✅Convenient
?Secure

Download: https://t.co/4sD65mSRbb pic.twitter.com/fOSBEMHVnK

— Doug Ford (@fordnation) October 15, 2021

Beginning Oct. 18 at 6 a.m., the portal will open for all Ontarians to download their enhanced vaccine certificate, regardless of their birth month.

Ontarians could also call the Provincial Vaccine Contact Centre at 1-833-943-3900 to have their enhanced vaccine certificates emailed or mailed to them.

Current vaccine receipts without a QR code will remain valid, but Ontarians would need to show a piece of identification with their name and date of birth along with their proof of vaccination when visiting select businesses and organizations.

To support Ontarians who are travelling internationally — the province is also including the Government of Canada logo on the enhanced vaccine certificate.

Businesses and organizations can download the free Verify Ontario app to confirm if a person is fully vaccinated against COVID-19 while protecting their privacy. Officials noted that the app never stores personal information and only shows the minimum amount of information necessary to confirm vaccination.

On Friday, 496 new cases of COVID-19 were reported; 334 cases are in individuals who are not fully vaccinated or have an unknown vaccination status and 162 are in fully vaccinated individuals. In Ontario, 22,177,830 vaccine doses have been administered as of Friday morning, 87.3% of Ontarians 12+ have one dose and nearly 82.8% have two doses.

As for hospitalizations, 265 people are hospitalized with COVID-19, 228 are not fully vaccinated or have an unknown vaccination status, and 37 are fully vaccinated.

Click here for more information on the enhanced vaccine certificates and here for more COVID-19 Ontario updates.