How to add a proof of vaccination shortcut to your Android home screen

Before this month, MobileSyrup published a guide on creating a shortcut on an iPhone to quickly access your vaccination record for when people needed to verify their vaccination status.

While helpful for iPhone users, the guide didn't have anything for Android users — this new guide should help in that regard. That said, if you've landed on this page and yous own an iPhone, yous should click here to head to the iPhone guide.

Okay, now that it'due south just us cool Android users, here's how you tin can create an easy shortcut to access your vaccination certificate on your telephone. To be clear, this isn't a replacement for a vaccination certificate app or similar applied science — information technology's merely a convenient way to carry a digital re-create of your vaccination receipt for if and when you demand to verify your vaccination status.

Download your vaccination receipt

Before annihilation else, you lot'll need to get a digital re-create of your vaccination condition. For Ontario residents, you can do that using this website from the Ontario government. You lot can click or tap hither to access the website, and then select 'Get your vaccine receipt.' If you don't alive in Ontario, you can follow the same steps just you'll demand to go your proof of vaccination from your province'southward/territory's/country's website instead.

Scroll to 'To download your proof of vaccination or book an appointment' and check that y'all've read the terms of apply, so press 'Go on.'

On the next page, y'all'll need to enter some personal data, including health card number, postal code and date of nascence. Next, the site volition let you access a PDF copy of your proof of vaccination. You'll want to download that to your estimator or telephone. Those doing this on their computer volition then need to move the PDF to their phone (if you apply a service like Google Drive or Microsoft OneDrive, you won't demand to upload the file from your telephone after).

Choosing an app to use

iPhone owners tin use a helpful app called 'Shortcuts' to create an app icon that links directly to a digital copy of their vaccination status. While Shortcuts isn't available for Android (it's an Apple app, after all), there are several like solutions. Perchance the easiest, if non necessarily the best, is using a file direction or cloud storage app to rapidly access the proof of vaccination PDF via a domicile screen shortcut generated by a cloud storage or file management app.

Realistically, this same strategy should work with any app that lets you create dwelling house screen shortcuts to specific files — Google Files, unfortunately, does not allow you do that as far as I tin can tell, which is why I chose to use a cloud storage app instead.

I tested this on Google Bulldoze, OneDrive and Dropbox and it works on all iii platforms. I recommend using whichever one you already use equally that'south easiest. All the same, I plant Google Bulldoze worked a little better than the other two because it allow you lot link straight to the PDF file.

More tech savvy people could probably apply an app like Tasker to create a shortcut to the PDF. However, Tasker costs $iv.59 in Canada and tin can be rather complex (I establish myself struggling to figure it out, and I'1000 normally pretty good with this stuff). I also tried IFTTT but couldn't find a way to go far do what I wanted.

Ultimately, the approach I detail below is a call back a good remainder of accessible and convenient. However, if yous've got other solutions, nosotros welcome you sharing them in the comments below. Finally, it'southward worth noting that some online services offer tools to turn your proof of vaccination PDF into a scannable QR code. While certainly helpful, non all businesses or locations are equipped to scan those codes and verify them — yous may need to have your proof of vaccination (digitally or physically) gear up to go besides. The steps below should assist yous get that prepare.

Creating your domicile screen shortcut

Commencement past uploading your vaccination PDF to the cloud service of your choice. On Google Drive, that'south all you demand to exercise. With OneDrive and Dropbox, I institute you lot couldn't create a shortcut to a specific file, so I recommend putting the PDF into a folder instead. And, for bonus efficiency, tap the three-dot card button next to the PDF file and set information technology to be available offline — the app you're using volition download the file and store it locally for you.

Then, become to the home screen on your Android telephone and do the following (annotation that some steps may differ slightly depending on the telephone you lot have, Android version and other software):

1. Press-and-agree on an empty home screen space and select 'Widgets' from the menu.

2. Observe the department for your app of choice (Google Bulldoze, OneDrive, Dropbox, etc.).

iii. Press-and-concord on the 'shortcut' widget, then drag it to the home screen.

4. Follow the steps to select a file or folder (Note that Google Drive will inquire which business relationship yous want to use if you have multiple accounts).

five. Select the vaccination PDF file (Drive) or the folder you put the file in (OneDrive, Dropbox).

Update October. 01, 2021 at 1:17pm: It seems I missed a few easy means to add shortcuts to PDF files to your home screen. Starting time upwardly, if you tap the three-dot bill of fare button next to a file in Google Bulldoze and scroll down, in that location is an option to add that file to your home screen directly from Google Drive. Information technology's a fair scrap easier and faster than the method explained above (thanks Mike!).

I also saw a few comments on Facebook noting that Samsung phones let y'all add PDF files to the home screen without needing to go through Google Bulldoze or other apps. I didn't have a Samsung telephone bachelor to test this on, but manifestly you lot tin can long-printing on a PDF file and add it to the home screen (thank you Steve and Jerome!).

Once that'southward washed, you should have a shortcut on your dwelling screen. When you tap information technology, it volition open either the PDF file or the folder y'all proceed the file in, letting you speedily access it from your home screen.