Vaccination Records DHA Format: What Parents Must Do

Your child is starting school in Dubai. The admissions office asks for vaccination records. You have them: a booklet from back home, stamped by a clinic, in French or Urdu or Hindi. Nobody at the school can read it. Or the records are in English but the vaccines listed don’t match what DHA expects.

This is one of the most common document problems parents face when enrolling children in Dubai schools. Here’s the full process — what’s needed, in what order, and how long to allow.

Why DHA format matters

DHA (Dubai Health Authority) follows the UAE National Immunization Programme. The programme specifies vaccines, the number of doses, and the age schedule. Your home country’s immunization schedule may look different:

• Different vaccine names or brand names for the same vaccine
• Different dose counts (some countries give 3 doses where UAE gives 4)
• Vaccines on the UAE schedule not included in your home country’s programme
• Combined vaccines described differently (e.g., “5-in-1” vs listing each component separately)

Schools regulated by KHDA (Knowledge and Human Development Authority) don’t evaluate vaccination records directly. They send them to a DHA-approved clinic or ask parents to get DHA clinic sign-off. If the clinic can’t read the records because they’re in another language, verification stops.

The UAE National Immunization Schedule (key vaccines for school-age children)

If your child’s country does not include PCV, Varicella, or Hepatitis A in its routine schedule, those vaccines will likely be needed in Dubai. They are given as catch-up doses.

When translation is required

Any vaccination booklet or record not in English or Arabic needs certified translation before a DHA clinic appointment. Common record types that need translation:

French vaccination booklets: Common from France, Belgium, West African countries (Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal, Cameroon), Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia. The vaccine names are in French (e.g., “Vaccin contre la rougeole” = measles vaccine). A certified translation maps these to their UAE equivalents.

German records (Impfpass): Germany has a standardized yellow vaccination booklet — very well organised but entirely in German. Translation is straightforward for an experienced medical translator.

Urdu records (Pakistan): Pakistani vaccination records are often a mix of Urdu and partially English text. The Urdu portions need translation.

Hindi records (India): Some Indian states issue vaccination records with Hindi text. Translation is required.

Tagalog (Philippines): Philippines immunization records may have Tagalog sections.

Russian and Cyrillic-script records: Russian, Ukrainian, Armenian, Georgian vaccination records in Cyrillic need translation.

Step-by-step: from foreign records to DHA-approved card

Step 1: Get a certified translation Send photos of the vaccination booklet (all pages, including any handwritten notes) via WhatsApp. A certified translation is completed same-day for most standard booklets. The translation maps foreign vaccine names to UAE schedule equivalents.

Step 2: Book a DHA-approved clinic appointment Book with a DHA-registered paediatric clinic. Bring the original foreign vaccination booklet and the certified translation. Allow 1-2 weeks for an appointment — clinics are busy, especially in August-September before school starts.

Step 3: DHA clinic review The doctor reviews the original records with the translation. They check which UAE schedule vaccines have been covered and which are missing. They may ask about vaccines that look incomplete or have unclear dose records.

Step 4: Catch-up vaccinations (if needed) Any missing vaccines are administered at the clinic. Some vaccines require multiple doses with spacing:

• MMR second dose: minimum 4 weeks after first
• Varicella second dose: minimum 3 months after first
• Hepatitis A second dose: 6 months after first

This is why the 6-8 week lead time is critical. If your child needs Varicella catch-up (two doses 3 months apart), you cannot finish the process in the week before school starts.

Step 5: DHA-format vaccination card issued Once the clinic is satisfied, they issue a DHA-formatted vaccination card. This is the document the school actually requires. The foreign booklet has served its purpose as source documentation.

What if records are missing entirely

Records lost in a house move, never properly maintained, or from a country with poor documentation practices — this is more common than people assume.

Options if records are unavailable:

1. Serology blood tests for certain vaccines (MMR, Hepatitis B, Varicella): these test for immunity, confirming previous vaccination without the paper record. A positive result is accepted by DHA as evidence of vaccination.
2. Restart the vaccination schedule: for vaccines not testable by serology or where tests show insufficient immunity. This is safe — an extra dose of a vaccine is not harmful.

If records are lost, discuss with the DHA clinic at the first appointment. They will advise based on your child’s age and vaccination history.

Multiple children: plan the timeline carefully

If you have more than one child enrolling, the process needs to run in parallel, not sequentially. Book clinic appointments for all children at the same time. If any child needs catch-up vaccines with multi-month spacing, those doses must be started earliest.

Abu Dhabi: same process, different authority

In Abu Dhabi, schools are regulated by ADEK (Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge). The health verification is done through DoH-approved clinics rather than DHA. The UAE national immunization schedule is the same. The translation requirement is identical. The clinic appointment process mirrors Dubai’s.

Send your vaccination booklets via WhatsApp: +971 50 862 0217. Same-day certified translation — including vaccine name mapping — so you can book the clinic appointment without delay.