Pfizer-BioNTech are seeking approval to extend permission to use their COVID-19 vaccine on children, according to Sky News Arabia Friday.

The companies have submitted a request to the European Medicines Agency (EMA), Europe's medicinal regulator, to obtain approval to extend permission to use their COVID-19 vaccine on children between the ages of 12 and 15, in a move that could provide the younger and less vulnerable population in Europe with access to the vaccine, for the first time.

The two companies said in a statement Friday that their application to the EMA was based on an advanced study of more than 2,000 adolescents, which showed the effectiveness and safety of their vaccination.

The children will remain under medical supervision for another two years.

Pfizer-BioNTech have previously requested an emergency use authorization from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to include children between the ages of 12 and 15.

In turn, The German Health Minister, Jens Spahn, welcomed the news that the vaccine may be approved for use on older children.

"This may make another real difference to our vaccination campaign, if approval is granted," said Spahn on the sidelines of a visit to a vaccine factory in the German town of Reinbek, according to the  Associated Press.

Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine was the first to receive approval from the EMA in Dec. 2020. It was licensed for use on anyone over the age of 16 in all 27 member states of the EU.