Ontario government asks for patience after COVID-19 vaccine certificate QR code site crashes

TORONTO -

Some 215,000 Ontarians successfully downloaded their COVID-19 vaccine certificate QR code Monday morning and they should consider themselves lucky.

The Ministry of Health told CTV News Toronto that a technical issue caused the site to crash for "a few users" hoping to access the new document on launch day.

“We are currently experiencing high volumes of downloads and a few users have experienced a brief technical issue,” a spokesperson for the ministry said in an email.

The enhanced system, which provides scannable documents to allow for faster entry into settings that require proof of vaccination, officially goes into effect on Friday and some users were able to download their codes last week.

Residents born between January and April got first dibs to access the enhanced vaccination certificate through the province's COVID-19 website on Friday, followed by other cohorts that got access over the weekend and provincewide access today.

Of the “few” users affected by the glitch, some said they were greeted with an error message after entering their health card data.

As of Monday, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said that 215,000 residents had downloaded their code today, including the 2.4 million receipts that have been downloaded over all.

It is unclear how many of the remaining 8.4 million fully vaccinated Ontarians were affected by the crash.

In light of the technical issue -- which the MOH originally said had been resolved earlier in the day – the province is asking people to be patient as they look to access the document which will allow them entry into most non-essential settings like gyms, theatres, and restaurant dining rooms.

“It’s exciting that so many Ontarians are eager to download their enhanced vaccine receipt with official QR code,” the province added.

It’s worth noting that residents who are fully vaccinated can continue to use the receipts they were issued when the system first went into effect on Sept. 22. if they can’t access their QR code. Businesses that require proof of vaccination must accept that previous iteration of the vaccine certificate, although it can no longer be accessed through the province’s online portal. 

You can download your COVID-19 vaccine certificate QR code here.