Spoedtest.nl confirms investigation for issuing fraudulent Covid vaccine certificates

The Ministry of Public Health filed a police report against a coronavirus tests provider because of "strong suspicions" that it issued false vaccination certificates. The company no longer has access to the CoronaCheck app system and can no longer schedule appointments for Testing for Access.

"We aim to block as many fraudulently issued vaccination certificates as possible," a ministry spokesperson said. A report was made to the police, who are taking the matter "very seriously." The Health and Youth Care Inspectorate was also informed.

According to De Telegraaf, the company involved is Spoedtest.nl. The police are investigating. An important question in that investigation is how a company that only does Covid-19 tests could issue vaccination certificates, and at such a large scale that it was noticeable, according to NOS.

The company acknowledged on Tuesday it was the firm subject of the ministry's allegations. "At the moment, we only know that an investigation is underway. We have full confidence in a successful outcome of this investigation," the company said in a statement.

People who still have a test appointment at the company will be informed by the provider itself. They will have to make a new appointment with another company. Spoedtest.nl has over a hundred test locations in the country, and is one of the largest private test providers in the Netherlands. Still, the ministry does not expect this to cause any immediate capacity issues because test demand is lower on weekdays.

The ministry also said it does not foresee any problems for the available test capacity now that this provider is excluded from the access testing program. The ministry expects other parties to be happy to fill the gap since they get paid per test.

The ministry emphasized that both generating and buying a fake QR code is fraud and therefore punishable by law. "You are endangering your own health and that of others around you." Given the current infection rates and the high pressure on healthcare, that is "the last thing we could use."