Covid-19 vaccines may give you antibodies that prevent you entering China

Name: Singapore first in Asia to approve Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine
Uploaded: 2021-02-25T11:00:19.000Z
Duration: 2 min 29 s
Description: Singapore first in Asia to approve Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine

China requires inbound air passengers to test negative for a viral antibody as well as for Covid-19 – but some have acquired that antibody from a vaccine

Travellers, who must get clearance from Chinese embassies before boarding flights, say they face uncertainty

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Some Covid-19 vaccines give recipients antibodies to help their body fight the coronavirus. Photo: AP

Zhuang Pinghui

Published: 7:00pm, 25 Feb 2021Updated: 7:01pm, 26 Feb 2021

When 26-year-old Peter Zhou graduated from medical school in New York and wished to return to Shanghai last month, he was faced with a dilemma: the antibody protection he received from a Covid-19 vaccine jab might be the very reason he could not go home.

In November, China started to insist inbound passengers produce evidence of testing negative for the antibody immunoglobulin M (IgM) – usually the first type of antibody produced against virus infection – along with a negative Covid-19 test taken within 48 hours before boarding.

Chinese embassies in the departure country assess this documentation and, if satisfied, issue a green health code via a mobile app to clear the way to board a flight.

Zhou took the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine early last month and planned to fly to China from Dallas two weeks later. He filed his positive IgM antibody test result to a Chinese embassy in the US together with a document proving he had taken his first vaccine dose, hoping it would be taken into consideration. He did not receive the green code.

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Singapore first in Asia to approve Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine

“I had to return to my … flat. I spent about US$800 on testing, hotel accommodation and air tickets in vain,” Zhou said.