Effective July 5 at 12:01 am Eastern Time ,Canada’s quarantine exemptions for fully vaccinated travellers will be getting the advantage of reduced quarantine measures; that is, they do not require quarantine for 14 days or take a day-eight test. Furthermore, the fully vaccinated travellers who are arriving in Canada by air now do not need to stay at a government-approved hotel waiting for the report of their on-arrival test.
On the other hand, Canada’s quarantine exemptions for fully vaccinated travellers before the specified time would not benefit from the new measures. Initially, this exemption was going to be in effect at 11:59 pm eastern time on July 5.
This new measure will be applicable to the individuals who are eligible to travel to Canada amid the COVID-19 border restrictions. Moreover, the travellers who have completed the full vaccination of one of the approved vaccines in Canada will be able to seek advantage of the new reduced quarantine measures.
Requirements for fully vaccinated travellers
The Canadian Border Patrol published a list specifying criteria that travellers need to meet in order to be eligible for benefits from these exemptions. The primary three points noted are:
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Must be eligible to travel to Canada:
This criterion suggests you must be a Canadian citizen, Canada permanent resident, temporary foreign worker, family member, an international student attending an approved institution, or others to be eligible to enter Canada.
- Must complete vaccination: You must take the full dosage of one of the vaccines that are authorized in the country. The approved vaccines in Canada include vaccines manufactured by Moderna, Pfizer, Janssen, and AstraZeneca/COVISHIELD. An important point to note here is you must have completed your last vaccination dose at least 14 days prior to entering Canada.
- Must fulfill all other requirements: Other criteria include demonstrating a valid pre-arrival COVID-19 test proof and submitting the rest required information through the ArriveCAN app.
How to submit documentation via the ArriveCAN app?
Travellers can download the new update for the ArriveCAN app from the Google Play Store or Apple App Store. You can use this new version via desktop as well. Fully vaccinated travellers must use this updated app version to upload the vaccination proof. Furthermore, the government has suggested the individuals who are not able to upload required information by themselves may enlist friends and family members to provide the documentation on their behalf.
The travellers must provide all the supporting documents in English or French. If not, then travellers must provide certified translations in either language.
The Canadian government has put this app into use amid the pandemic to facilitate smooth communication between travellers and border officers.
Travel restrictions are not yet lifted
The same restrictions apply to those who have not been completely vaccinated. These travellers must complete testing requirements as well as a compulsory 14-day quarantine. Non-vaccinated travellers must take pre-arrival, on-arrival and day-eight tests to be able to enter Canada. Moreover, air travellers will be required to await their on-arrival test results at a Canadian government-approved hotel.
The border restrictions were extended by Canada to July 21. Furthermore, Canada is still not allowing tourists to enter the border. However, the Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, has indicated that the country may lift more restrictions in the coming few weeks as more people complete their vaccination.
