Canada to remove all COVID-19 entry restrictions and travel requirements from Oct 1

Canada will remove all COVID-19 entry restrictions, testing, quarantine and isolation requirements for travellers entering the country from Oct 1, announced the Public Health Agency of Canada in a press release on Monday (Sep 26).

Regardless of citizenship, all travellers entering Canada will no longer need to provide proof of vaccination, undergo pre-arrival or on-arrival testing, or carry out COVID-19-related quarantine and isolation. Requirements to monitor and report their COVID-19 symptoms or submit public health information through the ArriveCAN application or website will also be removed.

Those who have entered Canada in the 14 days before Oct 1 will not be required to complete the remainder of their quarantine or isolation or their testing requirements once the new rules come into effect.

Transport Canada, the government department responsible for transportation policies and programs, will also remove health check and mask-wearing requirements when travelling by air or rail.

For cruises, travellers will no longer be required to be vaccinated, undergo pre-board tests or use the ArriveCAN application. A set of guidelines, aligned with the approach used in the United States, will remain to protect passengers and crew.

The removal of entry restrictions and measures was based on factors such as the country’s high vaccination rates, lower hospitalisation and death rates and the availability and use of vaccine boosters, rapid tests and treatments for COVID-19. 

It is also based on modelling that indicates the country has “largely passed the peak of the Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 fuelled wave”.

Although the mask-wearing requirements are being lifted, all travellers are still strongly recommended to wear high quality and well-fitted masks during their journeys.

Canada’s Minister of Health Jean-Yves Duclos said: “We expect COVID-19 and other respiratory viruses will continue to circulate over the cold months, so I encourage everyone to stay up-to-date with their COVID-19 vaccination, including booster doses and exercise individual public health measures.”

Canada advises against travelling for those with COVID-19 symptoms. Travellers who fall sick during their travel and remain sick upon arrival should inform a flight attendant, cruise staff or border services officer. They may be referred to a quarantine officer who will decide whether they need further medical assessment. This follows the country’s Quarantine Act, where COVID-19 is listed as a communicable disease.