Canadian officials have announced that they are working towards the removal of the hotel quarantine and 14-day self-isolation period that is currently required of most crossing its border and entering Canada.
This proposal, however, would only apply to travelers who have been fully vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus, and no specified date for this change has been set.
Patty Hajdu, Canada’s health minister, said that “early July” is what she is anticipating as that is when officials expect 75% of Canadians to be fully vaccinated and the reopening of the Canada-United States border. That timeline is also mentioned on Canada’s official travel and tourism website.
Hajdu added that she and other officials want to “take things carefully and cautiously” in order for their country to have a sustained recovery from the pandemic. Currently, just 8% of those in Canada have been fully vaccinated while an additional 54% have received one dose of a two-dose vaccine.
The vaccines that will be accepted by Canadian border officials are the ones that have been produced by Johnson & Johnson, Moderna, Oxford-AstraZeneca and Pfiizer-BioNTech.
Travelers should note that once this plan is adopted, they must have been fully vaccinated for at least 14 days prior to arriving in Canada; otherwise, they will be viewed as being unvaccinated. Also, a recent negative PCR test result needs to be provided on arrival by all.
It is not known at this time how travelers will be able to prove that they are fully vaccinated. A vaccine passport for Canadians is being considered, but no timeline for the implementation of that has been set. It appears that it will be after early July.
Those looking to fly into Canada prior to this proposal being adopted and are included in the limited group of people eligible to do so must stay in a hotel for up to three days upon arrival. During that time, they will await the results of the COVID-19 test that they took at that airport. If it is negative, they may leave and complete the rest of their self-isolation period at home.
Travelers crossing a land border may spend those entire two weeks at home.