While it is important to be immunized, it is also important to be able to prove that you have been immunized. You can carry your immunization card with you, or you can let Google Pay carry it.

Google recently announced that the Google Pay app can now store (and display) COVID-19 vaccination cards.3]

Regular Google Pay owners may know that the app usually only works on one device. Therefore, if they set it up on a new phone, they will not be able to make payments on their old phone. This is a wise security measure.

But not so for your digital COVID vaccination card, which as part of Google Pay's new "Passes API" can be used to store non-payment cards and loyalty cards, if you so desire, available on multiple devices.

Of course, this will only work if the vaccine card provider makes the vaccine card available in digital format, and even then only if the new API is supported.

Judging from Google's own image examples, it appears that the digital vaccine card contains all the basic information about you and the vaccine you received. This includes which vaccine provider provided the vaccination, what vaccination you received, when you received it, and which lot you actually received it from.

There is also a QR code so that someone else, perhaps a doctor or health insurance company, can access all that information when needed.

Notably, these cards are stored locally and do not touch the cloud. While this has the advantage of not being shared with third parties or used for targeted advertising, it also means that cards must be manually added to additional devices. If one wants to be able to access it from multiple devices, one must do so.

As with payment cards, it is also not possible to add a COVID vaccination card to Google Pay unless the device has a lock screen. Also, the phone must be Play Protect certified and must be running Android 5 or later.

Currently, the option to add digital immunization cards to Google Pay is limited to a few providers in the US. However, Google has promised to expand to other countries soon.