Canada is set to lift all COVID-19 restrictions for travelers starting Saturday, Oct. 1.
This means New Yorkers can more easily enter the country via airports, cruise ports or at crossings across 445 miles of border shared with Canada, without having to show proof of vaccination against COVID.
“Thanks largely to Canadians who have rolled up their sleeves to get vaccinated, we have reached the point where we can safely lift the sanitary measures at the border,” Jean-Yves Duclos, Canada’s minister of health, said in a statement.
What do I need to know if I’m traveling to Canada?
Here’s what will change about traveling to Canada from the U.S.
- Those traveling no longer have to show they are vaccinated against COVID-19, the Public Health Agency of Canada announced Monday.
- Travelers don’t have to use ArriveCAN, Canada’s app and website to submit health information.
- They don’t need to test before or upon arrival.
- Travelers don’t have to carry out quarantine or isolation, or monitor and report if they have signs or symptoms of COVID-19 when they arrive to Canada.
- The federal department Transport Canada won’t require health checks arriving by air or rail.
- Passengers on planes and trains no longer need to wear masks. This also applies to cruises, though Canadian health officials said some guidelines will remain in place that align with U.S. measures.
Still, Canadian health officials strongly recommend wearing masks on their trips.
What about traveling from Canada to the U.S.?
The U.S. still maintains strict requirements for travelers to the country, which include being fully vaccinated with limited exceptions (one is for travelers 17 and under.) This applies to travel from Canada.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention still recommends wearing masks on U.S. public transportation, but masking is no longer required on airplanes, trains or other public transit.
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Rep. Brian Higgins, D-Buffalo, whose border House district has parts of Erie and Niagara counties, called for the U.S. to ease its own COVID-19 travel restrictions.
“The extended measures have kept loved ones apart and kept border communities from reaching full economic recovery,” he said in a statement Monday. “The end of restrictions is overdue. Canada’s decision is the right one. The U.S. should follow immediately.”
Will travel pick back up between Canada and the U.S.?
In March 2020, Canada closed its borders due to the pandemic. In August 2021, it began easing restrictions for those fully vaccinated from the U.S., then for those from other countries.
Currently, the Peace Bridge Authority that oversees the port of entry connecting Buffalo to Fort Erie, Ontario, still has a lull in travelers: The month of August had just over 376,000 crossings from both sides, compared to more than 597,500 in August 2019, before the pandemic.
Elizabeth Carey, AAA of Western New York’s director of public relations, expected travel to increase, even as prices on gas and other costs have increased.
“We’re seeing people looking to travel internationally,” she said. “They’ll spend the money despite the high gas prices and the high food prices, just because they cherish those vacations so much.”
What’s the latest on COVID in Canada?
Canada’s public health agency said its loosened restrictions were based in part by modeling “that indicates that Canada has largely passed the peak of the Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 fueled wave,” plus Canada’s high vaccination rates, lower hospitalization and death rates, and the availability and use of vaccine boosters (including new bivalent formulation), rapid tests and treatments for COVID-19.
About 85% of Canada’s population has received at least one dose of the vaccine, higher than the U.S. rate of 81%, according to the Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Center.
In the past week, Canada had over 17,800 new cases and 230 new deaths, Johns Hopkins data showed. The U.S. saw nearly 371,600 new cases and close to 2,900 deaths during the same time.
The CDC said Canada has a “high” level of COVID-19. If travelers aren’t up to date with vaccines and might struggle accessing health care, the CDC warned of traveling to Canada.
Kathleen Wong and Nathan Diller of USA TODAY contributed to this report.
Eduardo Cuevas covers race and justice for the USA TODAY Network of New York. He can be reached at EMCuevas1@gannett.com and followed on Twitter @eduardomcuevas.
