COVID‑19 vaccines

Who can get vaccinated

Getting vaccinated and staying up to date with your COVID-19 vaccines is the best way to protect yourself, your loved ones and our communities from severe outcomes from COVID-19 and its variants.

COVID-19 vaccines are available to everybody aged six months and older in Ontario at no cost, regardless of citizenship or immigration status, even if you do not have an Ontario health card. 

If you do not have an Ontario health card, you may use another form of identification (photo identification is required if you are aged 18 or older) to verify your name and date of birth, such as:

• a driver’s licence or Ontario photo card
• a passport
• a piece of registered mail, pay stub, student card, library card
• government issued identification from other jurisdictions (including foreign and expired government documents)

When you should get a booster dose

All Ontarians aged five years and older are encouraged to get their booster dose, as evidence shows that vaccine protection decreases over time.

Once eligible, you should get your booster dose at the following recommended intervals since your last dose or following a COVID-19 infection:

• six months, if you are aged five and older and not at high-risk of severe COVID-19 illness
• three months, if you are at high risk of severe COVID-19 illness as outlined below

Individuals at high risk for severe COVID-19 illness include:   

• individuals aged 65 years and older
• residents of long-term care homes, retirement homes, Elder Care Lodges, and individuals living in other congregate settings aged 12 years and older
• individuals aged 12 years and older with moderately to severely immunocompromising conditions who have spoken with a health care provider
• individuals aged 12 years and older with an underlying medical condition that places them at high risk of severe COVID-19 
• health care workers
• pregnant individuals
• adults who identify as First Nations, Inuit or Métis and their adult non-Indigenous household members
• adults in racialized communities and/or marginalized communities disproportionately affected by COVID-19

Who is considered immunocompromised

You might be eligible as someone who is immunocompromised if you are:

• a transplant recipient (including solid organ transplant and hematopoietic stem cell transplants)
• receiving stable, active treatment (chemotherapy, targeted therapies, immunotherapy) for a malignant hematologic disorder or solid tumor
• in receipt of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T-cell
• an individual with moderate or severe primary immunodeficiency (for example, DiGeorge syndrome, Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome)
• in Stage 3 or advanced untreated HIV infection and those with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome
• undergoing active treatment with the following categories of immunosuppressive therapies: anti-B cell therapies (monoclonal antibodies targeting CD19, CD20 and CD22), high-dose systemic corticosteroids, alkylating agents, antimetabolites, or tumor-necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitors and other biologic agents that are significantly immunosuppressive or are taking specific immunosuppressant medications (PDF)
• receiving dialysis (hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis)

Contact your health care provider if you have received a hematopoietic stem cell transplant, hematopoietic cell transplant (autologous or allogeneic) or have had (CAR)-T-cell therapy after your COVID 19 vaccination. You may be recommended to be re-vaccinated due to loss of immunity following therapy or transplant.

Book an appointment

Vaccine eligibility

Eligibility for vaccines is based on age and risk.

Ages six months to four years

Infants and children aged six months to four years are eligible for a primary series only. A booster dose is not approved for this age group.

It is recommended for infants and children to receive the same vaccine – either Pfizer or Moderna – for all doses in a primary series.

Learn more about COVID‑19 vaccines for children and youth.

Ages five and older

Individuals aged five years and older can receive their primary series, followed by a booster dose. Eligibility and booking for booster doses are based on the interval since your last dose or following symptom onset or a positive test for a COVID-19 infection. 

Learn more about when you should get your booster dose. 

Individuals who are immunocompromised

Individuals aged six months and older who are immunocompromised should get three doses of the COVID-19 vaccine as their primary series (or four doses, for infants and children aged six months to four years, depending on the product they receive).

Learn more about when you should get your booster dose. 

Learn more about which vaccine you can get.

When you should consult your doctor before getting the vaccine

Contact your doctor or health care provider if you have questions about getting the vaccine or if the person getting vaccinated:

• is immunocompromised due to disease or treatment (to discuss optimal timing for vaccination)
• has had a severe allergic reaction after a COVID 19 vaccination or has an allergy to a component of the COVID 19 vaccine

Read the Canadian Immunization Guide for more information.

Vaccine doses

COVID‑19 vaccination includes primary series and booster doses.

Primary series

A primary series is the initial number of doses of a COVID 19 vaccine that a person needs to develop a strong initial immune response. Most people need two doses of an mRNA vaccine (Pfizer, Moderna) or Novavax (for those over 12 years of age) to complete their primary series. If you are immunocompromised, you may need a three-dose primary series (or a four-dose primary series, for infants and children aged six months to four years, depending on the product they receive).

Each dose in a primary series should be given at an interval of eight weeks between doses.

Booster doses

Booster doses are doses of a COVID 19 vaccine received after the primary series. Protection after a primary series may decrease over time, especially against new variants. Booster doses help keep you protected from severe outcomes from the virus.

Once eligible, you should get your booster dose at the following recommended intervals since your last dose or following a COVID-19 infection:

• six months, if you are aged five and older and not at high-risk of severe COVID-19 illness
• three months, if you are at high risk of severe COVID-19 illness or if you are immunocompromised and have spoken to your health care provider

The recommended intervals between doses above are in accordance with National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) recommendations. They are based on evidence that suggests longer intervals between doses result in a stronger immune response and higher vaccine effectiveness that is expected to last longer. These intervals may also be associated with a lower risk of myocarditis and/or pericarditis and may also result in a better response after the next dose.

If you’ve had COVID‑19

If you’ve already had COVID 19, you should still be vaccinated for protection from reinfection or severe outcomes. While infection alone provides some protection, vaccination combined with infection helps further improve the immune response.

Even if you’ve recovered from COVID 19, you are not immune and can still get the virus, be contagious while not showing any symptoms, and spread it to others in your community.

If you have had COVID-19, you should wait the following intervals after symptom onset or a positive test before receiving your next dose:

• If completing your primary series:
  • two months (56 days) if you are not immunocompromised and have no history of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C)
  • one to two months (28 – 56 days) if you are immunocompromised and have no history of MIS-C
  • if you have a history of MIS-C, until clinical recovery has been achieved or up to 90 days since the onset, whichever is longer, regardless of immunocompromised status
• If getting a booster dose:
  • at least three months (84 days); however, six months (168 days) may provide a better immune response

Discuss the best timing for you with a health care provider. It can depend on whether your next dose is part of your primary series or a booster dose and on your health status.

If you were vaccinated out of Ontario

If you received a COVID 19 vaccine outside of Ontario or Canada, you should register your vaccination(s) by contacting your local public health unit.

You must provide proof, such as an immunization record, to your public health unit to be registered. The public health unit may ask for additional proof of vaccination, such as clinic or pharmacy information or travel documents such as a boarding pass.

If you applied to have your out of province vaccination(s) registered with your public health unit and are waiting to have it registered, you can call the Provincial Vaccine Contact Centre at 1-833-943-3900 to book your next vaccine appointment if you fit all of these criteria:

• you have an Ontario health card or COVID ID (a unique number assigned to you by your public health unit in place of an Ontario health card number)
• your public health unit uses the provincial booking system
• you can bring your out of province vaccination receipts to your vaccination appointment for validation

You had a vaccine not authorized by Health Canada

If you received a COVID 19 vaccine not authorized by Health Canada, please contact your public health unit to find out if you need additional doses to complete your primary series.

If you received a non-Health Canada authorized vaccine, you only need to provide proof of vaccination to your public health unit. No other action is needed.

Why you should register your vaccination

If you get any COVID 19 vaccines outside of Ontario, you should register them so you can:

• book additional doses in Ontario
• be contacted if there is any clinical guidance about the vaccine you got
• get an Ontario vaccination certificate with QR code

Vaccine types

Only vaccines that Health Canada has approved and determined to be safe and effective will be administered in Ontario.

All vaccine options:

• are safe and available in Ontario
• can be safely mixed for individuals aged five and older
• provide strong protection against severe illness from COVID‑19 and its variants

Vaccines authorized include:

• mRNA vaccines:
  • Pfizer – authorized for individuals aged six months and older
    • primary series (original vaccine): recommended for individuals aged five to 29 years to reduce possible risk of myocarditis/pericarditis
    • booster doses (bivalent vaccine): authorized for individuals aged five years and older
  • Moderna – authorized for individuals aged six months and older
    • primary series (original vaccine): recommended for immunocompromised individuals aged six months to four years because it requires fewer dose to complete the primary series
    • booster doses (bivalent vaccine): authorized for individuals aged 18 years and older
• protein-based vaccines:
  • Novavax – available upon request, or if you have an allergy or contraindication to mRNA vaccines (Pfizer or Moderna), with requests made through your public health unit, health care provider or participating pharmacy
    • primary series: authorized for individuals aged 12 years and older and
    • booster doses: authorized for individuals aged 18 years and older
• virus-like particle vaccines:
  • Medicago – authorized for individuals aged 18 to 64 years (not available for administration in Ontario)
• viral vector-based vaccines:
  • AstraZeneca – authorized for individuals aged 18 years and older (no longer available in Ontario)
  • Janssen (Johnson & Johnson) – authorized for individuals aged 18 years and older and available if you have an allergy or contraindication to all other vaccines (Pfizer, Moderna and Novavax), with requests made through your public health unit, health care provider or local participating pharmacy; only one dose is required, with a booster shot recommended after three months

Bivalent vaccines are vaccines that target two different viruses or two strains of the same virus. The bivalent COVID-19 vaccine:

• is an updated version of the COVID-19 vaccine that targets the original COVID-19 virus and the Omicron variant, which is currently the dominant variant in circulation in Ontario
• is formulated to better protect against the currently circulating COVID-19 variants
• can help restore protection that has decreased since your previous vaccination

is now being administered as booster doses to eligible individuals – you must have completed your primary series to receive it

Learn more about the vaccines from Health Canada.

Vaccines for children and youth

Vaccines are safe, effective, and are the best way to stay protected from COVID‑19 and its variants. They are an important tool to help prevent serious illness and support the overall health and wellbeing of our children and communities.

Health Canada has approved COVID‑19 vaccines for use in children aged six months and older and determined that these vaccines:

• are safe, effective and manufactured with rigorous quality control and assurance
• show a strong immune response and prepare the immune system to fight against COVID‑19 and its variants
• significantly decrease the risk of severe outcomes from COVID‑19 infection
• significantly decrease the risk of longer-term illness from multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C), a rare but serious condition that can occur in the weeks following COVID‑19 infection

It will not interfere with getting other vaccines

Children and youth who are not up to date on other vaccines can still receive a COVID‑19 vaccine.

If your child is behind on immunizations, we encourage you to contact their health care provider to get up to date.

Children aged six months and older can receive a COVID-19 vaccine at the same time as, or at any time before or after any other vaccines, including the flu shot. Parents and caregivers should discuss vaccination with their health care provider to determine the best timing for COVID‑19 vaccination.

Learn more about vaccines for children at school.

Where to get vaccinated

Eligible individuals aged six months and older can book an appointment through:

• the COVID‑19 vaccination portal
• the Provincial Vaccine Contact Centre at  1-833-943-3900 (TTY for people who are deaf, hearing-impaired or speech-impaired: 1-866-797-0007), available in more than 300 languages, seven days a week (excluding holidays) from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
• public health units using their own booking system
• participating primary care providers
• participating pharmacies
• Indigenous-led vaccination clinics
• the GO-VAXX bus (for ages five and older)
• hospital clinics (for ages five and older, visit your local hospital or public health unit for booking details, if available in your region)
• mobile or pop-up clinics (for ages five and older, visit your local public health unit website for details, if available in your region)

Public health units may also offer additional options for vaccination for children aged six months to four years old, such as walk-in clinics, which will not be on the COVID‑19 vaccination portal. For information on local options, please visit your local public health unit website.

For all vaccine doses, eligibility is defined by age. Individuals must be that age or older on the day of their vaccination.

Indigenous-led clinics

If you identify as First Nations, Inuit or Métis, you can find information about vaccination or book an appointment to get your COVID‑19 vaccine through an Indigenous-led vaccination clinic.

Get general vaccine information

It’s okay to still have questions about the vaccine. If you do, you can:

• contact the Provincial Vaccine Contact Centre to speak to an agent or health specialist at 1-833-943-3900 (TTY for people who are deaf, hearing-impaired or speech-impaired: 1-866-797-0007), available in more than 300 languages, seven days a week (excluding holidays) from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
• contact your local public health unit
• book a phone appointment with the VaxFacts Clinic to speak with a trusted physician from the Scarborough Health Network at www.shn.ca/vaxfacts or 416-438-2911 ext. 5738 (available to all Ontarians in over 200 languages)

Parents and guardians

• book a confidential conversation with a registered nurse through the SickKids COVID‑19 Vaccine Consult Service at www.sickkids.ca/vaccineconsult or 1-888-304-6558 (appointments are available in multiple languages)
• learn more from SickKids about COVID‑19 vaccines for children and youth
• download our fact sheet on COVID‑19 Vaccines for Children and Youth
• talk to your child’s family doctor, paediatrician or nurse practitioner

Help with the COVID‑19 vaccination portal or obtaining proof of vaccination

For help with booking an appointment using the COVID‑19 vaccination portal or obtaining proof of vaccination, call the Provincial Vaccine Contact Centre at 1-833-943-3900 (TTY for people who are deaf, hearing-impaired or speech-impaired: 1-866-797-0007).

Help over the phone is available 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., 7 days a week (excluding holidays). You can get information in more than 300 languages.