When autumn comes, protection from any earlier COVID-19 vaccination you may have had will be starting to wane. For those who are more likely to become seriously ill from COVID-19, the NHS offers a free vaccine in the autumn, previously known as the 'Autumn Booster'.
Current vaccines provide good protection against severe disease and hospitalisation. UKHSA surveillance data relating to last autumn's programme shows that those who received a vaccine were around 43% less likely to be admitted to hospital with COVID-19 from 2 weeks following vaccination, compared to those who remained unvaccinated.
Vaccination continues to help protect against severe illness, hospitalisations and deaths arising from COVID-19. Last winter, between November, December and January around 13,000 people were admitted to hospital with the virus.
Eligible groups for autumn 2025
The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has updated its advice for the autumn 2025 COVID-19 vaccination programme, which has been accepted by ministers. The focus of the programme is shifting towards targeted vaccination of those at highest risk of serious disease.
For autumn 2025, COVID-19 vaccination will be offered to:
- adults aged 75 years and over
- residents in care homes for older adults
- individuals who are immunosuppressed aged 6 months and over
This represents a change from the autumn 2024 programme, which also included adults aged 65 to 74 and all those aged 6 months and over in a clinical risk group.
The eligibility is the same across the 4 nations of the UK (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland).
The vaccine should usually be offered no earlier than around 6 months after the last vaccine dose. If you are eligible, you can get protection from an autumn COVID-19 vaccination even if you have not taken up a COVID-19 vaccine offer in the past.
Eligibility for the immunosuppressed
We understand that having a weakened immune system (immunosuppression) is a lot less straight forward than the other criteria. Looking online can cause even more confusion, as people might see themselves (and be considered by others) as immunosuppressed but might not fit the immunosuppression criteria for vaccination.
So, what are the immunosuppression criteria? Eligibility is outlined in Chapter 14a of the Green Book, a document published by UKHSA specifically for public health professionals. It can be a complicated document for non-experts, so we've listed some of the groups here:
- Organ, bone marrow or stem cell transplant patients
- Those being treated with systemic steroids for more than a month
- Those living with HIV
- Those receiving immunosuppressive or immunomodulating biological therapy, including children who are about to receive therapy
- Those undergoing chemotherapy or radiotherapy
- Those requiring long-term treatment for immunosuppression
- Those with a history of haematological malignancy including chronic leukaemia, lymphomas, and leukaemia
- Those with genetic disorders affecting the immune system
While this list summarises some major groups, it does not cover everything. Please check online at nhs.uk/get-vaccine to see if you are eligible.
How to access the COVID-19 autumn vaccination
COVID-19 spreads more easily in winter because we spend more time indoors with others.
NHS England will confirm details on how and when eligible people can access the autumn vaccine in due course.
If you are eligible, having your COVID-19 vaccination this autumn will give you protection from serious COVID illness over winter.