The Canadian government has lifted the requirement for local and outbound international passengers to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, effective June 20. However, all re-entry requirements will remain in force and all passengers will continue to wear face masks.
This change will allow unvaccinated Canadians to board planes and trains heading to local or international locations, but they will still have to comply with current testing and quarantine requirements when re-entering from international destinations.
Foreigners coming to Canada will still need to be vaccinated to enter, although they could leave the country if they are not vaccinated.
In addition, “due to the unique nature of cruise ship travel”, vaccination requirements for passengers and cruise ship crew will remain in force.
The requirement to use the ArriveCAN application to display proof of vaccination on arrival to avoid federal quarantine will continue and all passengers will have to continue to comply with entry requirements, potentially limiting the destinations that unvaccinated passengers will be able to to visit. Many countries, including the United States, continue to require proof of vaccination upon entry.
Intergovernmental Minister Dominique LeBlanc, Transport Minister Omar Algabra, Finance Council Chairman Mona Fortier and Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos made the announcement Tuesday, along with major updates on Canada’s vaccine mandates for transport workers and federal officials.
In disclosing the updated policies, the government said the mandates were effective during the pandemic, but were never intended to be permanent. However, if the number of cases increases again, federal officials say they will not hesitate to reinstate all suspended travel restrictions related to COVID-19.
The Canadian government says the move comes now “after a successful vaccination campaign”. Nearly 90 percent of eligible Canadians have been vaccinated against COVID-19.
“Today’s decision is not based on something we woke up yesterday or this morning and decided to do. We did our homework… What made us [to] today was a period of discussions, of consultations, of looking at the big picture, of preparing for a potential wave in the autumn, but [also] the current situation today, “Algabra said.” It is clear that the situation with COVID is not the same now as it was last autumn, when we implemented the vaccine mandate. “
Federal mandates, which require all passengers on planes or trains to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 before boarding, were first promised by the Liberals during the last federal election and came into force in October 2021.
Pressure on the government to raise travel vaccination requirements from opposition politicians and the tourism industry has intensified in recent months, citing significant congestion and delays at Canadian airports and easing of provincial public health rules.
During these calls, the Liberals defended their mandates, repeatedly citing the need to follow the science and advice of public health officials.
On Tuesday, ministers said the federal government’s “top priority” remains to keep Canadians safe and that the decision is not about easing tensions at Canadian airports, which they attribute to “staff shortages”.
Rather, ministers cite the evolution of the virus, current epidemiological and modeling forecasts and the high vaccination rate in Canada as key factors in raising mandates now.
As the change in policy is likely to cause an even greater influx of passengers arriving at Canadian airports, the transport minister has faced several questions about whether the government is equipped to adequately deal with the added crowd. He said work was continuing with the Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) to “increase efficiency”.
Last week, the government stopped its mandatory random testing of vaccinated passengers at airports, but maintained the requirement that all unvaccinated passengers be taken tampons.
To be considered fully vaccinated under federal policy, people had to show evidence of a full series of vaccinations, but not a booster dose, despite calls from public health officials to make a third dose part of the requirement for better protection against severe disease and to strengthen weakened immunity.
On Tuesday, Duclos said the Omicron variant had shown that two doses were “no longer enough”, although the government did not go beyond encouraging those who had not yet received a booster dose of the COVID-19 vaccine to do so. .
“Our rate of accelerators in Canada is too low. It is lower than all other G7 countries and that is not good. However, we know that we can do better… and we will continue to do so in the coming weeks and months with all the provinces and territories, so that we are better prepared and sufficiently prepared for what … may come during autumn.”
In response to the news, Canada’s National Airlines Council, which represents Canada’s largest carriers, including Air Canada and WestJet, said it saw the move as a “major milestone for the aviation sector, the tourism industry and Canadian passengers”, but said that it is not enough to solve the problems of airports.
The Council calls for immediate changes to ArriveCAN in order to eliminate duplicate health examinations, end the mandate for incoming international passengers and commit to permanent suspensions and random tests.
“The government’s decision to suspend the national vaccine mandate for air and transport workers is a positive step that will simplify many aspects of travel and bring Canada closer to the emerging standard currently being applied around the world. The airlines will work hard to implement these changes, “said Susan Acton-Gervais, interim president and chief executive officer of the council.
Conservative transport critic Melissa Lanzman said that while the government was “finally” terminating travel mandates, she said the suspension was not the same as a complete elimination. “Some vaccine mandates are not all vaccine mandates. “There is still NO science that we have not seen to justify any mandates,” she wrote on Twitter.
NDP leader Jagmeet Singh says his team was consulted on the decision to abolish these mandates before the announcement, given that the NDP is in a deal of trust and delivery with the Liberals.
“We said that this is a very important factor in any decision, that we follow the best evidence and that we inform Canadians why certain orders are in force.” And if there is no more evidence, we should not continue with [public health] order, “Singh said.” We supported that decision. “
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