Vaccinations against COVID-19 have started at a differing pace around the world. The approval and roll-out of more vaccines is largely seen as a positive step for the return of business travel but it’s only part of the story, and there is still much that we do not know.

According to a survey of travel managers, GBTA reported that 82% of travel buyers think the availability of vaccines has some form of impact on the return to travel. However, only 10% of that majority said employees will be able to travel for work when they have been vaccinated. Others said it would require the wider population to have also been vaccinated, which will clearly take longer. More than half responded with ‘I don’t know’.

Despite the unknowns and uncertainties, airlines are starting to put additional procedures in place. Measures such as social distancing, mask-wearing and the use of hand sanitiser are likely to continue for some time. Whether business trips at your company are still happening, imminent or will take some time to restart, there are some factors you can consider now to be prepared.

What should travel buyers consider?

1. Is a vaccine enough; what is your policy
   As suggested by the GBTA poll data above, a vaccine might not be enough for companies to relax business travel restrictions. You, along with other stakeholders, need to think about what needs to happen or the thresholds that will make your organisation more comfortable about sending employees on business trips. Does it depend on the vaccine roll-out in the country the traveller is visiting, for example?

   There are also some practical factors to consider: borders need to be opened up, travel bans lifted and restrictions such as hotel quarantine eased. Your TMC can talk you through the details and help make amendments to your travel policy if needed.

2. Which digital health passport to use
   If your TMC has a digital health passport implemented, such as FCM Asia’s digital health wallet, it will help to ease the transition and simplify your business travel process.

   Otherwise ask your TMC to speak to airlines on your behalf, to save you the hassle of contacting them directly. If you eventually communicate the app/s to travellers, it may help to remind them of your preferred airline partners (if any) so that they are more likely to stick to one app. Your TMC can advise you on the direction to take and how to manage concerns such as data privacy.

3. How travellers will react
   Sadly, COVID-19 has changed the way some people think about travel. The GBTA survey of buyers taken in Dec 2020 showed 53% of respondents thought employees were willing to travel for work. What of the other 47%; they may be worried about travelling until certain measures come into place. Some may not want to have the vaccine, which may affect their ability to travel. Harvard Business Review has predicted that companies will be sued for requiring employees to have vaccination proof before they return to the workplace. Will that be the case for travel too?

4. Can companies buy vaccines for travellers
   With many countries prioritising the vulnerable and frontline healthcare workers for vaccinations, this means that it will take some time before the majority of the population will be vaccinated, including corporate travellers. There is an ongoing argument about whether businesses will be able to buy vaccines for employees. Harvard Business Review claims companies will make bulk purchases of the vaccine for employees and will use it as a way to attract and retain talent, with this BTN article highlighting this possibility to happen only when companies such as Astra-Zeneca and Pfizer are no longer selling to governments.