Canada officially began the first phase of easing travel restrictions on July 5, at 12:01 AM ET.
The country announced a number of new measures for fully-vaccinated travelers who have been exempted from border restrictions:
- Fully-vaccinated travelers are no longer required to quarantine.
- They are also no longer required to comply with day-eight testing.
- Additionally, those arriving by air do not need to stay at a government-authorized hotel while awaiting their on-arrival test results.
For children and dependent adults who have yet to be vaccinated but are arriving with a fully-vaccinated traveler, they are still required to quarantine for 14 days. However, they do not need to be quarantined in a government-authorized hotel.
Am I a fully-vaccinated traveler?
To be considered fully-vaccinated, travelers are required to have received a recommended dose of a COVID-19 vaccine at least 14 days before entering Canada. Vaccines must be manufactured by one of the companies that Canada has approved. Travelers may receive the vaccine in any country, but must receive a dose approved by Canada. These include:
Accepted vaccines:
- Pfizer (Comirnaty, tozinameran, BNT162b2)
- Moderna (mRNA-1273)
- AstraZeneca (Vaxzevria, AZD1222, Covishield)
- Janssen (Johnson & Johnson) – single dose
Canada will not count travelers as fully-vaccinated if they have received vaccinations from the following:
Vaccines not currently accepted:
- Bharat Biotech (Covaxin, BBV152 A, B, C)
- Cansino (Convidecia, Ad5-nCoV)
- Gamalaya (Sputnik V, Gam-Covid-Vac)
- Sinopharm (BBIBP-CorV, Sinopharm-Wuhan)
- Sinovac (CoronaVac, PiCoVacc)
- Vector Institute (EpiVacCorona)
- Other
There is no change in rules for those who are not considered fully-vaccinated. They are still required to comply with mandatory quarantine and testing measures. Those arriving by air must book a stay at a government-approved hotel while awaiting the results of their on-arrival COVID test.
Further information for fully-vaccinated travelers
In order to be eligible for this new measure, fully-vaccinated travelers must comply with the following:
- They must not have any symptoms of COVID-19.
- They are still required to do pre-arrival and on-arrival testing.
- They must still submit the required COVID-19 information (paper or digital proof of vaccination) and a detailed quarantine plan to the ArriveCAN app.
As the vaccine rollout continues, Canada continues to ease up on travel restrictions for those who wish to enter Canada. Just recently, they also announced a new measure allowing Certificate of Permanent Residency (COPR) holders who are outside the country to safely arrive. Exemptions have also been made for citizens, permanent residents, as well as their immediate family members. Temporary foreign workers and international students who are studying at an approved institution have also been allowed to enter the country.
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