The government of Canada today announced new measures which will ease some of the travel restrictions which have been in place since the onset of the COVID pandemic.
Before summarizing the new measures, it is important to understand two primary concepts to consider whether someone may qualify under the eased requirements:
- ‘Fully vaccinated’ means that a traveller must have received the full series of an approved vaccine/vaccine combination AND that at least 14 days have elapsed since the completion of the final vaccination.
- A traveller must present proof of vaccination in English or French on arrival (or have a certified translation)
- Currently, recognized vaccines are:
- Pfizer
- Moderna
- AstraZeneca/COVISHIELD
- Janssen (Johnson & Johnson)
- ‘Eligible Traveller’ is someone who is in one of the following groups:
- An individual with right of entry. These are Canadian citizens, permanent residents and persons registered under the Indian Act;
- A foreign national eligible to enter Canada as outlined in the current travel restrictions. These are people who may seek entry to Canada for a non-discretionary purpose such as work. Discussion of which foreign nationals may be permitted entry to Canada at this time can be found at http://www.kranclaw.com/2020/12/update-on-canadian-covid-related-travel-restrictions/.
- Eligible Traveller therefore does NOT include ordinary visitors to Canada. They remain prohibited from entering. Foreign workers approved for work permits may be permitted to enter Canada.
With the above definitions in mind, the following measures will come into effect on July 5, 2021, at 11:59pm Eastern Time:
- Fully vaccinated travellers currently eligible to enter Canada will not be required to quarantine or complete a day-8 COVID test.
- Fully vaccinated air travellers currently eligible to enter Canada will not be required to quarantine and stay at a government-authorized hotel, if they meet required criteria.
- Non-vaccinated children under 18 or dependent adults travelling with a fully vaccinated individual will also be exempt from the hotel quarantine requirement.
Though the measures make it clear as to who is now quarantine exempt, we feel it is important to restate the corollary to the above, which is that non-fully vaccinated eligible travellers will continue not to be exempt from quarantine requirements, and will continue to be subject to all relevant COVID requirements such as day-8 testing, etc.
The following caveats and details should be noted about the new exemptions:
- Travellers must still arrive with a suitable quarantine plan in case they do not meet quarantine exemption requirements on arrival (e.g. someone tests positive for COVID) [see https://travel.gc.ca/travel-covid/travel-restrictions/isolation/quarantine-start]
- Any relevant traveller who tests positive (or is exposed to someone who tests positive) for COVID must follow all local public health requirements, including quarantine if necessary.
- To seek the quarantine exemption, travellers will need to upload their testing results to the ArriveCan app or web site (see https://arrivecan.cbsa-asfc.cloud-nuage.canada.ca/welcome). Note that the app will be updated to accommodate this requirement, so travellers need to ensure that they download the most recent version – which is expected to be available soon. Provision of information generally on the app, as previously required, remains in place for all travellers
- Travellers must retain a copy (paper or electronic) of their vaccination documentation and originals of any certified translation for verification at the border and for 14 days following their entry to Canada.
- All Travellers must continue to comply with pre-and on-arrival COVID testing requirements (whether quarantine exempt or not).
In summary, COVID restrictions as they existed to date will continue for now, except that certain groups (as noted above, e.g, citizens, and notably foreign workers eligible to travel) who have tested negative for COVID and have been fully vaccinated with approved COVID vaccines for at least 14 days, will be exempted from quarantine and day-8 testing requirements. We expect further details to follow, and further easing as time move on, but readers may wish also to refer to https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/news/2021/06/backgrounder-phase-1-of-easing-border-measures-for-travellers-entering-canada.html for details about the announcement as of the current time.
The information in this article is for general purposes only, and not intended as legal advice for any particular situation.