Report Vaccination Information and View Immunization Records
Report vaccination information to Public Health
Public Health maintains the immunization records for children in all schools and licensed child care centres in Niagara. These records are used to protect your child if an outbreak of a vaccine-preventable disease occurs.
Public Health relies on complete immunization records to quickly identify who is at risk. Children will be notified and may be excluded from child care or school for their protection until the risk of infection is over. In Niagara, this was done in 2015 for measles and 2017 for mumps.
Public Health does not routinely maintain adult vaccine records.
Reporting vaccines for children 0 to 17 years
Every time your child receives a vaccine, it must be reported to Public Health.
Parents / legal guardians and students 16 years of age and older are responsible for reporting vaccines directly to Public Health. Doctors, child care facilities and schools don't do this for you.
Vaccines received at a school clinic run by Niagara Region Public Health don't need to be reported. Report vaccines received from Public Health to your health care provider.
Immunization Connect
Report vaccinations and request records using Immunization Connect.
All information collected by this secure system is confidential. You can use your Ontario health card to access Immunization Connect. If you're having trouble trying to report vaccinations received using Immunization Connect, contact the Vaccine Team.
Other ways to report your child's vaccine(s)
Provide a copy of your child's personal immunization record (yellow card) to Public Health through:
- Call 905-688-8248 or 1-888-505-6074 ext. 7438
- Email the Vaccine Team
- By communicating with us, you're agreeing to keep the exchange of personal health information to a minimum. Communication through email is not secure or protected. There is a possibility that information you include in the email can be intercepted in transmission or misdirected. Niagara Region Public Health cannot guarantee security with emails and will not send emails that include your personal health information. See Public Health's privacy statement.
- Fax 905-688-8225
- Mail P.O. Box 1052, Station Main, Thorold, Ontario L2V 0A2. Write "Attention VPD" on the envelope.
- Drop off at a Public Health office between 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Write "Attention VPD" on the envelope.
Report vaccines received to Public Health for children 0 to 17 years
The fastest and most convenient way to report vaccines (except for COVID-19 vaccinations and flu shots) or request records is to use Immunization Connect.
Additional benefits to children and their families
An up-to-date immunization record may be needed for:
- Attending summer camp
- Travelling out of the country
- Applying for college or university
- Certain occupations or co-op placements
- Receiving medical treatment
- Expecting a baby or planning a pregnancy
- Changing health care providers
If you lose your child's personal immunization record (yellow card), you can request your records online using Immunization Connect.
You can keep your doctor up-to-date with vaccines received from Public Health by requesting records online using Immunization Connect.
If you received vaccinations outside of Canada
Use Immunization Connect even if vaccines were received outside of Canada.
Before getting a vaccine at one of our clinics, we must do a full review of your immunization record. After this is done, a public health nurse will be able to make vaccine recommendations. If you need help, contact the Vaccine Team.
If you speak a different language, call us and let us know the language you speak or the country you're from. We'll add an interpreter to the phone call to translate.
Vaccine exemptions
Learn about the exemption process for child care and school.
View or request immunization records
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How to view and print immunization records
Immunization Connect allows you to report vaccinations and request records. You can view and print immunization records for you or your child. Children 16 years of age and older must request their own records due to privacy laws.
If you're unable to access an immunization record using Immunization Connect, contact the Vaccine Team.
If you're registering your child for school
Report your child's vaccinations using Immunization Connect. You don't need to request an immunization record to provide to the school.
If you're unable to get an immunization record using Immunization Connect
If you live or attend school in Niagara, you can also request an immunization record for yourself or your children (under the age of 16). Records make take up to 14 days to be received. Contact the Vaccine Team.
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Record availability
It’s important to know that immunization records are not provided to Public Health from doctors, child care facilities or schools.
This means that Public Health may not have an immunization record for you, particularly if you were born before 1980, unless you attended one of our clinics.
Public Health may not have an immunization record for you or your child if you:
- Have not reported vaccinations to Niagara Region Public Health
- Just moved to Ontario
- Received your vaccinations from a health care provider or pharmacist (most health care providers don't report vaccinations to Niagara Region Public Health)
Handling personal immunization records
Immunization Connect is the quickest way to submit and retrieve vaccination records for children attending child care or school.
- Keep your immunization record safe
Keep your immunization record in a safe place with other valuable documents, such as birth certificates, health cards and passports.
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Bring your immunization record(s) to each vaccine visit
It's important to keep you and your children’s personal immunization record up to date.
Bring your yellow card or immunization record print out from Immunization Connect to each vaccine visit. This will help you and your health care provider keep an up-to-date record of which vaccines have been received.
- If you don't have a personal immunization record
- Examples of when immunization records may be required
By law in Ontario, Public Health must have an up-to-date immunization record or valid exemption on file for each child attending a licensed child care centre, licensed home child care agency (Child Care and Early Years Act, 2014) or school (Immunization of School Pupils Act).
Adults may need to provide their immunization record for post-secondary education or work.
If you're travelling, check your destination to see what vaccinations are recommended or required.
COVID-19 vaccination
For individuals wishing to update their COVID-19 immunization record with vaccines received out of province in the last six months.
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Online COVID-19 vaccination documentation
We will only accept or review documentation from those who live in Niagara. Any submissions received for clients who have an address outside of Niagara will not be processed.
Non-Niagara residents are advised to contact their local public health unit for direction on submitting a COVID-19 vaccine certificate (immunization record), updating your health card number or chosen name. Requests submitted by those who live outside of Niagara will not be processed by Niagara Region Public Health.
All personal information / personal health information collected by this secure form is confidential and will only be used and disclosed for the purposes of administration of the program. Public Health maintains and facilitates COVID-19 immunization records for all residents in a provincial database system.
If we have requested further information about your documentation and have not received a response within 30 days, any further review will need a new submission.
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Keep your original immunization document
It is very important that you keep your original COVID-19 immunization record stored in a safe location with other valuable documents, such as birth certificates, health cards and passports.
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Types of reporting for Niagara residents
Report an out of province COVID-19 vaccination
For Niagara residents who have received a COVID-19 vaccination outside of Ontario or from a non-Ontario vaccine stock.Report changes to your Ontario health card information
For Niagara residents who have recently updated their health card information with Service Ontario.Request your Ontario COVID-19 vaccine certificate be updated to reflect your chosen name
For Niagara residents who have not updated their health card with their chosen name.