Meningococcal ACWY vaccination at the pharmacy

Since 2 July 2026, trained pharmacists have been allowed to vaccinate adults against meningococci A, C, W and Y. Meningococci are bacteria, divided into serogroups. A, C, W and Y are four of them, and a quadrivalent conjugate vaccine protects against exactly these four. The rule for pharmacies is § 20c of the Infektionsschutzgesetz, Germany’s Infection Protection Act, and it covers all inactivated vaccines. The pharmacy vaccinates from the age of 18.

The vaccination is not yet offered everywhere. A pharmacist needs training by a physician, and for the newly added vaccinations the Bundesapothekerkammer, the federal chamber of pharmacists, is still drawing it up.

Who the vaccination is recommended for

The Ständige Impfkommission at the Robert Koch-Institut, Germany’s standing committee on vaccination, does not recommend it for all adults. In its 2026 recommendation it names these groups:

• adults under 25 who have not had the vaccination, as a catch-up before their 25th birthday
• people with a congenital or acquired immune deficiency. The recommendation includes complement and properdin defects, treatment with C5 complement inhibitors, a lack of antibodies, and a missing or non-functioning spleen.
• laboratory staff exposed to meningococci
• travellers to countries where the disease is epidemic, especially if they have close contact with local people

For people with an immune deficiency and for laboratory staff at risk, the committee also recommends the vaccination against meningococcal B. In its assessment, the vaccination gives reliable individual protection against A, C, W and Y. The committee does not currently recommend a booster. According to the Robert Koch-Institut, the available data do not show how long protection lasts.

When the vaccination is needed for travel

The vaccination is compulsory for the pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia. For other trips, it depends on the destination. The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Tropenmedizin, the German society for tropical and travel medicine, mainly names the countries of the African meningitis belt. According to the society, travellers’ overall risk of infection is very low, though it may be higher in shared accommodation or at mass gatherings.

According to the Auswärtiges Amt, Germany’s Federal Foreign Office, pilgrims on Hajj or Umrah must show proof of the meningococcal ACWY vaccination. It must have been given at least ten days before entry. According to the society, the certificate is valid for five years if a conjugate vaccine was used. The vaccination record must state this in English.

The vaccination is also recommended before a long stay abroad, for example to study or train. The destination country’s recommendations then apply.

What the vaccination costs

You normally pay for a travel vaccination for a private trip yourself. Your health insurer pays if your job or your training requires the stay abroad. It also pays where there is a special public interest in keeping a disease from being brought into Germany. Both exceptions come from Book V of the Sozialgesetzbuch, the German Social Code, as the 2026 recommendations of the Ständige Impfkommission set out.

Some insurers pay for travel vaccinations voluntarily, as a Satzungsleistung under their own rules. If the vaccination is needed for work, your employer may also pay.

Who is entitled to what is set out in the Schutzimpfungs-Richtlinie of the Gemeinsamer Bundesausschuss, the body that decides what statutory health insurance covers. If it has not ruled on a new recommendation of the Ständige Impfkommission within two months, insurers pay until it does. If you pay yourself, each pharmacy sets its own price. Ask there before you book.