COVID-19 vaccine
The autumn and winter vaccination programme, which includes the COVID-19 booster and flu vaccine, is now available for eligible people in Northern Ireland.
Autumn booster 2024 programme
The vaccination programme, to help protect Northern Ireland against deadly viruses ahead of winter, has started and will continue into the winter.
You will be offered the COVID-19 booster vaccine if you are:
- aged 65 and over
- a resident or staff member in a care home
- aged six months to 64 years in a clinical risk group
- a frontline health and social care worker
- pregnant
If you are eligible for vaccination against COVID-19 or flu this autumn and winter, you should make yourself aware of your own GP surgery’s or community pharmacist’s vaccination arrangements and work with them to get vaccinated.
You may be eligible for both the flu and the COVID-19 Autumn booster vaccines.
If you're offered both vaccines, it's safe to have them at the same time.
Where to get your COVID-19 booster
GP surgeries
You can get the COVID-19 booster from your GP surgery if you are:
- aged 65 and over
- 18 to 64 years old in a clinical risk group
- pregnant
- Your local doctor
Community pharmacies
Participating community pharmacies are offering the COVID-19 booster vaccine to:
- care home residents and staff
- frontline HSC workers
- people aged 65 and over
- those aged 18 to 64 in a clinical risk group
- pregnant women
You can find out which community pharmacies are offering vaccinations near you by putting in your postcode at the link below:
HSC Trust clinics
You can get the COVID-19 booster from a HSC Trust clinic if you are:
- a frontline HSC worker
- six months to 17 years old in a clinical risk group
- pregnant
If you are housebound and fall within an eligible group, a HSC Trust team will be in touch to arrange your vaccination.
You can book a vaccine appointment at your local HSC Trust clinic at the link below:
More information about who can get the flu vaccine is available at:
Infant programme
The COVID-19 vaccine is being offered to children aged six months to four years at higher risk of coronavirus, in line with the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) advice.
Children at serious risk from the complications of coronavirus infection include:
- those with severe neurodisabilities
- those whose immune systems don’t work as well (immunosuppression)
- those with profound and multiple or severe learning disabilities (including Down’s syndrome) and those on the learning disability register
- those with long term serious conditions affecting their health
Some parents may receive a letter or a phone call to invite their child to an HSC Trust clinic for vaccination.
If you receive an invitation letter, it will explain how to make the appointment for your child.
The leaflet to support parents of children at serious risk from the complications of coronavirus infection is available at:
Young people aged five to 17 years
Some young people are eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine if they are between the ages of five and 17 and in a clinical risk group.
Further information is available at:
- COVID-19 vaccination - a guide for children and young people and translations
- What to expect after your COVID-19 vaccination - advice for children and young people and translations
Pregnant or believe to be pregnant
Women who are pregnant are encouraged to have their booster jabs as soon as possible, to help better protect themselves and their baby from any serious consequences from COVID-19.
If you test positive for COVID-19 you should wait four weeks after the infection before getting a vaccination.
Further advice is available at:
For advice about getting the COVID-19 vaccination, you can speak to your obstetric provider or midwife.
Pregnant women can receive their vaccination at their GP, local community pharmacy or Health and Social Care Trust.
The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) has produced detailed questions and answers on COVID-19 vaccines, pregnancy and breastfeeding at this link:
There is absolutely no evidence that any of the vaccines can affect the fertility of women or men.
More information is available on the British Fertility Society website.
First doses of COVID-19 vaccine
If you have never received a COVID-19 vaccine, you can receive a vaccine during the autumn booster programme.
Further information about the vaccine
The Public Health Agency has developed a range of leaflets and a frequently asked questions section:
The leaflet to support parents of children at serious risk from the complications of coronavirus infection is available at:
Types of vaccine
There are many different types of coronavirus vaccines.
The vaccines that will be administered during the autumn 2024 programme include:
- COVID-19 Comirnaty® JN.1 (Pfizer) dispersion for injection (infant and adolescent formulas)
- COVID-19 Spikevax JN.1 (Moderna) dispersion for inject
Vaccine safety
The vaccines have met strict standards of safety, quality and effectiveness set out by the independent Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).
More information is available at:
Coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine research registry
The NHS COVID-19 vaccine registry allows members of the public to register their interest and be contacted to take in clinical studies.
If you are 18 years old or over and live in the UK, you can sign up to give permission for researchers to contact you about taking part in COVID-19 vaccine studies.
You are not signing up to take part in a specific health study when you use this service. You are letting researchers know you're happy for them to contact you if they think you might be suitable to take part in their studies.
More information about taking part in research and other opportunities to take part in COVID-19 research can be found at: