It depends on the type of vaccine.
These vaccines don't include any live material and you can donate straight away after having one. However, you may wish to consider not booking 3 days either side of getting one of these vaccines so that you minimise the risk of feeling unwell around the time of donation.
- COVID-19 vaccine
- Diphtheria
- Influenza (both seasonal flu and H1N1 or 'swine' flu)
- Haemophilus influenzae
- Hepatitis A
- JEspect, the inactivated vaccine against Japanese encephalitis virus
- Meningococcus
- Pertussis (whooping cough)
- Pneumococcus
- Polio (injected)
- Q fever
- Tetanus
- Typhoid (injected)
- Human papillomavirus (Gardasil)
- Shingrix for shingles.
Other vaccines are made from live material, meaning you can give plasma right away but need to wait four weeks before donating blood or platelets. These include:
- Measles
- Mumps
- Rubella
- Polio (Sabin, oral)
- Chicken pox/shingles (shingles vaccinations other than Shingrix)
- Tuberculosis (BCG)
- Rotavirus
- Typhoid (oral)
- Imojev, the live vaccine against Japanese encephalitis virus
- Yellow fever
Wait 2 weeks before donating anything
- Hepatitis B
Wait 8 weeks before donating anything
- Smallpox
Wait 12 weeks before donating anything
- Trial vaccines for anything other than HIV or hepatitis C
Wait 12 months or more before donating anything
- Trial vaccines for HIV or hepatitis C
If you're unsure what type of vaccine you received, wait 2 weeks before donating anything, and then only donate plasma for 12 months.
Remember, if you aren’t sure about whether, or when, you can give blood after having a vaccination, just contact us.