Here are Canada's new travel rules as the government eases border restrictions
Canada just got a new set of travel rules that will make coming home from vacation a lot easier for many people in Toronto — but don't go ditching your masks just yet.
Mandatory pre-entry COVID tests were scrapped for vaccinated adults on April 1, but some specific rules have remained in place since that time. Most, but not all, were just lifted.
Effective today, April 25, 2022, fully vaccinated travelers will no longer be required to provide the government with a quarantine plan upon arrival in the country.
Vaxxed travellers are futhermore allowed to go maskless in public spaces (where permitted by law) after arriving in Canada and no longer have to spend 14 days monitoring and reporting symptoms. They are also able to skip maintaining a list of close contacts and locations visited.
Anyone over the age of 12 who is currently eligible to travel to Canada but does not have full vaccination status must still submit pre-entry COVID-19 tests, but the rest of us are off the hook — so long as we provide our vaccine passports and contact information through the government's ArriveCAN app within 72 hours before arrival.
"Fully vaccinated travellers who do not submit their information into ArriveCAN won't be eligible for the fully vaccinated traveller exemption (i.e., they may have to submit a pre-entry test result and suitable quarantine plan, quarantine, and undergo testing in Canada)," reads a release issued by the federal government on Friday.
ArriveCAN shunners may also "face additional delays at the border for public health questioning and "be subject to fines or other enforcement action," according to the feds.
Restrictions are easing & more people are interested in air travel, but it’s important to remember that additional @GovCanHealth checks are still in place at Canada’s borders & the air travel experience is still much different than it was pre-pandemic.
— Toronto Pearson (@TorontoPearson) April 24, 2022
As of today, unvaccinated or partially vaccinated kids aged 5-11 will no longer be required to quarantine post-travel or provide COVID-19 tests upon entry, though they must be accompanied by a fully vaccinated guardian (parent, step-parent, tutor, etc.) at the time of their arrival.
Quarantine plan mandates are also being scrapped for unvaccinated adults "with a medical contraindication to a COVID-19 vaccine."
One very important thing to note for everyone flying, taking a train, or riding a boat to or from Canada: All travellers, regardless of vaccination status, are required to wear a mask throughout their entire travel journey.
"The gradual easing of restrictions for travellers is part of our balanced and science-based approach to managing COVID-19 and its variants," said Transport Minister Omar Alghabra on Friday.
"Wearing a mask offers an extra layer of protection for you and your fellow travellers, and will help keep Canadians, workers and our transportation system safe."
Jack Landau
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