About 1.25 million codes for Belgium's free PCR travel tests have been requested since the system went online at the start of the summer holidays, according to data given by Karine Moykens of the Interfederal Testing & Tracing Committee.
Of those 1.25 million requested codes, 72% have actually been used. About 240,000 paid codes have also been requested, Moykens told the Belga news agency.
There are no figures on how many of the requested PCR tests ultimately showed a negative or a positive result.
Since 26 June, Belgian residents over the age of 6 who have not yet had the opportunity to be fully vaccinated can apply for a code for a free PCR test.
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How does it work?
Log on to the www.mijngezondheid.be government website (with eID, Itsme,…).
If you are a Belgian resident, click on the link to request an activation code for a free PCR test: ‘Request a code for a free or paid PCR test *’ and follow the steps.
If you are not a Belgian resident, click on the link to request the activation code for a paid PCR test: ‘Request a code for a paid PCR test (non-residents of Belgium)’ and follow the steps.
To schedule a test at a test centre, click on the link “Make an appointment for a test with a code” and follow the steps.
Normally, the test centre knows if the PCR test is free or paid for, but the authorities ask people to bring their activation code to the centre with them, just to be sure.
Who can request the free tests?
The codes are available to anyone living in Belgium (according to the data in the National Register) who has not yet had the opportunity to be fully vaccinated, starting from the age of 6, if they:
– have not yet been invited for vaccination,
– were invited for vaccination less than 30 days ago,
– received the first of two required doses less than 49 days ago for Moderna or Pfizer, or less than 84 or 70 days ago for AstraZeneca (depending on whether the first dose was given before or after 25 May),
– received a dose of Johnson & Johnson less than 14 days ago.
People who do not want to be vaccinated against the coronavirus are not entitled to the two free tests.
Requesting a free test is still possible until 30 September. The activation code remains valid for ten days. The codes for the paid tests remain valid for thirty days.
