Why switch to a digital vaccination record?

30 July 2026 · updated 11 October 2026 · 4 min read

emmunity editorial teamHow we verify our information →

The paper vaccination card has had its day: it gets lost, sits at the back of a drawer, and is never there when you need it. The shift goes well beyond apps: Belgium is rolling out its own digital tools, and Europe has written the shift into law. Here is what changes, and how to benefit today.

Key takeaways

A single paper copy = a single point of failure; digital is always there.
Belgium is already digitising: official MaSanté app, regional portals, Vaccicard in Wallonia and Brussels.
Europe follows: the EHDS regulation has been in force since March 2025.
A family digital record adds what the registries do not: reminders, family, offline.
Demand GDPR compliance and EU hosting: your health data deserves it.

The problem with paper

A single copy, often missing exactly when you need it: at the airport, in the ER, at school enrolment. If it is lost, the whole history has to be rebuilt via the doctor, the school, the pharmacy… A real obstacle course, which we detail in our dedicated guide.

Source : Lost your record? The step-by-step guide ↗

emmunity reminds you before every due date, without a second thought.

Belgium has already made the turn

This is not a prediction, it is underway: MaSanté shows your registered vaccinations (with an official mobile app), the Walloon and Brussels regional portals show them in your shared health record, and Vaccicard has become the reference platform for registering vaccines given in Wallonia and Brussels, in collaboration with the German-speaking Community.

In Brussels, registration through Vaccicard has been mandatory since January 2026, according to Vivalis and the Brussels Health Network. In Wallonia, the decree has been in force since 23 January 2026, but it defers the duty to register: Wallonia’s official website announces a 12-month transition. The exchange with the Flemish Vaccinnet 2.0 is announced to be operational by the end of 2026 and is not yet confirmed (as read on 10 October 2026).

The country has already shown it can do this, with the COVID certificates and the CovidSafeBE app.

Source : The MaSanté app (INAMI) ↗Vaccicard (Vivalis) ↗Vaccinnet, Vaccicard, MaSanté: who does what ↗

Europe too: the EHDS is law

26 March 2025

The EHDS regulation in force since

2029

Belgian rollout of MyHealth@EU

The European Health Data Space (EHDS) regulation has been in force since 26 March 2025: eventually your health data (vaccinations included) will follow you anywhere in the Union, through the MyHealth@EU infrastructure Belgium is deploying towards 2029.

In other words: the digital record is the direction an entire continent is taking.

Source : The EHDS (eHealth platform) ↗Regulation (EU) 2025/327 (EUR-Lex) ↗

So why a family app on top of the registries?

Because the official registries do something else: they archive, injection by injection, what professionals record. That is their role, and they do it well.

What they do not do: bring your whole family into one view, warn you before due dates, carry the old vaccines that only exist on paper, or work offline in a far-away airport.

That is exactly the layer a family record like emmunity adds, alongside the registries, never instead of them.

Reminders at the right time

10 years

Interval of the dTpa booster

6 months

Between the two hepatitis A doses

The dTpa every ten years, the second hepatitis A dose six months after the first, the kids’ boosters, the grandparents’ yearly flu shot: nobody remembers all of that. A digital record does it for you and warns you at the right time.

Available anywhere, even offline

Your vaccination proofs stay with you: abroad, at a new doctor, at sports-club enrolment. Even without a connection, right where online portals stop.

What about privacy?

Your health data is among the most sensitive there is; the GDPR even puts it in a special category.

Before choosing an app, check three things: explicit GDPR compliance, hosting in the European Union, and a business model that does not rest on selling data.

That is emmunity’s contract: GDPR-compliant, EU-hosted, never resold.

How to digitise your record today

Photograph every page of your paper card: your immediate backup.
Cross-check with MaSanté ("My vaccines") for the vaccinations already registered electronically; the mobile app shows no vaccination data from the Walloon and Brussels health networks (use the web portal).
Fill the gaps via your doctor, school or occupational medicine (see our recovery guide).
Enter everything once into your digital record, and switch on the reminders.
Keep the paper card somewhere safe: it remains a useful document.

The logical next step

Belgium is digitising registration, Europe is standardising exchange, and emmunity takes care of what touches you daily: the whole family up to date, without thinking about it. Join the waitlist to be notified at launch.

Frequently asked questions

Public tools already exist: why another app?

MaSanté and the regional portals show what professionals recorded: that is the official reference. A family app adds the family view, reminders, old paper-only vaccines and offline access, as a complement, not a replacement.

Does emmunity replace the official registries?

No, and it does not claim to: the regional registries and MaSanté remain the medical reference. emmunity is your practical everyday tool, for the whole family.

What is changing at the European level?

The EHDS regulation, in force since March 2025, organises health-data exchange across the Union via MyHealth@EU. Belgium targets full deployment towards 2029. Digital is becoming the standard.

How do I know a health app is trustworthy with data?

Three checks: explicit GDPR compliance, data hosting in the EU, and a clear business model that does not involve selling your data.