Explainer: COVID-19 Vaccine Certificate now available on Service NSW app

Freedom to go to the shops over recent days has come with the headache of needing to show you've checked in and then show your proof of vaccination using two separate apps.

The cure for that headache was released on Thursday night with the Service NSW app updated to allow you to store your COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate in the same app as your driver licence and COVID QR check-ins.

READ MORE: How to get proof of your vaccination status in NSW

For the last few days NSW residents have been encouraged to use both the Federal Express Plus Medicare App and the Service NSW app for their check-in and proof of vaccination. All the while, a trial has been conducted in regional NSW of a new app update which integrates the data from both apps into one.

After Victoria's Service Victoria app updated earlier this week to integrate with the Express Plus Medicare app, NSW has undergone the same refresh.

This new integrated process in NSW means users can scan the venue or store QR code with the Service NSW app and also show proof of check-in and their vaccination status on the same screen.

The process is seamless once you've updated both apps from the app stores, and you've got the required logins to your accounts with MyGov and Service NSW.

As a sign of the respect for privacy of each user's vaccination status, the user must choose each time if they want to show their vaccination status, because some venues are not required to ask. This ensures unvaccinated users will not be required to expose that when proving they have checked in.

READ MORE: How Victoria's COVID-19 vaccination check-in app works

Anti-fraud safeguards

Importantly, the Service NSW app has integrated a range of anti-fraud measures into it.

The "checked in" screen now shows a moving hologram of the NSW logo, meaning a screenshot will not cut it.

Additionally, should a venue wish to confirm a user's vaccination certificate is valid, they can ask to see the full certificate within the Service NSW app which shows a unique QR code on screen. This code can be read by any other user of the Service NSW app, and because the code is updated regularly and the validation occurs in real-time, it too cannot be forged or screenshotted for multiple uses.

The apps won't be needed for long, but they're needed now.

Victor Dominello, the minister responsible for the app's development in NSW, admits that when restrictions further ease there will be less and less requirement for these check-in apps.

READ MORE: NSW's vaccine passport trial 'seamless', minister says

However, they are a necessary part of our plans to open up at these early stages, so will be important for at least the next few months.

What should I do now?

Firstly, update the Medicare Express Plus and Service NSW apps on your smartphone.

Then ensure both are logged into your accounts with the respective MyGov or Service NSW authentication.

Once done, in the Medicare app you can view your immunisation history, choose Share with Checkin app and then add to Service NSW.

Your next meal, beer or shopping trip will be that much easier as a result.