Canada Won’t Open Border To Unvaccinated Travelers For “Quite A While”

by · Forbes
Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada, says he has no intention of allowing unvaccinated ... [+] travelers into the country anytime soonGetty Images

Despite recently loosening travel rules for vaccinated Canadians who travel internationally, Canada shows no signs of opening up to all travelers anytime soon. Yesterday, at a press conference in British Columbia, Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in response to a question about when the country might start welcoming vaccinated or unvaccinated travellers, Trudeau responded by saying: “I can tell you right now that's not going to happen for quite a while.”

“We need to continue to ensure that the safety of Canadians, of all the sacrifices that so many people have made over the past many, many months, are not for nothing,” Trudeau said. He went on to note that “The next step will be looking at what measures we can allow for international travel [for those] who are fully vaccinated. That will be our first focus. We will have more to say in the coming weeks.”

The U.S.-Canada border has been restricted to essential travel since March 2o2o and is set to remain closed until at least July 21. However, Trudeau has recently taken some steps to make travel easier for vaccinated Canadians. As of July 5, fully vaccinated Canadians returning to Canada can avoid a stay in a quarantine hotel and the 14-day quarantine if they follow strict procedures.

Despite recently loosening travel rules for vaccinated Canadians who travel internationally, Canada ... [+] shows no signs of opening up to all travelers anytime soon.AFP via Getty Images

Fully vaccinated travellers must adhere to the following requirements: they must have a pre-entry test (see, pre-entry testing for air travellers and pre-entry testing for land travellers). They must also provide a quarantine plan where they can stay for at least 14 days. According to the website: “pre- and on-arrival testing requirements for travellers arriving to Canada by air or land continue to apply for everyone, unless otherwise exempted.

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  • Unless exempt, all travellers, five years of age or older, regardless of citizenship, must:
  • provide proof of a negative COVID-19 molecular test result taken within 72 hours before their scheduled flight or arrival at a land border crossing (if arriving by land the test must be done in the U.S.), or
  • provide proof a positive COVID-19 test taken between 14 and 90 days before their scheduled flight or arrival at the land border crossing, and
  • take a COVID-19 molecular test on arrival in Canada either at the airport or land border, following instructions provided to you by a government official upon entry to Canada.
  • Travellers must retain copies of their test results for the full 14 days after entry to Canada, and be prepared to present them to a government official on demand.

To be approved, travellers must then electronically submit COVID-19-related information into ArriveCAN before their arrival, meet the pre- and on-arrival test requirements, show no COVID symptoms, and have a suitable quarantine plan. Proof of vaccination is also required. The website states that “Final determination regarding exemptions is made by a government representative at the border based on the information presented at the time of entry into Canada, which is why a quarantine plan is still required.”

To be considered fully vaccinated, you must:

  • be eligible to enter Canada
  • have received the full series of an accepted COVID-19 vaccine or a combination of accepted vaccines
  • have received your last dose at least 14 days prior to entering Canada
  • upload your proof of vaccination in ArriveCAN

There are also no exceptions for those who are only partially vaccinated. Provinces and territories may have their own border measures as well as public health guidelines, so it's vital that travellers have the most up-to-date travel requirements for the province or territory of destination.