Canada extends COVID border measures, will move testing outside airports

The federal government has extended remaining pandemic border measures for travellers entering Canada.

The measures, which include the use of the ArriveCAN app as well as testing and mandatory quarantining for unvaccinated travellers, will remain in place until at least Sept. 30.

“As we move into the next phase of our COVID-19 response, it is important to remember that the pandemic is not over,” said Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos.

“We must continue to do all that we can to keep ourselves and others safe from the virus,” he added, urging people who are eligible to get vaccinated.

“As we have said all along, Canada’s border measures will remain flexible and adaptable, guided by science and prudence.”

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Random COVID-19 testing continues at the land border. However, Canada paused these measures at airports for fully vaccinated travellers on June 11.

The government says it will continue with that pause until at least mid-July while it works to move testing outside of airports to select stores, pharmacies, or virtual appointments.

It notes moving testing out of airports will help address increasing travel volumes “while still being able to monitor and quickly respond to new variants of concern, or changes to the epidemiological situation.”

In addition to scaling back testing measures, Canada suspended its vaccination requirement for domestic travel on June 20.

People entering Canada must fill out the ArriveCAN app within 72 hour before arriving in the country. The app needs to be filled out before boarding a cruise ship headed for Canada, though some exceptions exist.

The federal government says compliance with ArriveCAN is over 95 per cent for travellers arriving by land and air.

The use of the app has created some challenges for border guards, according to the Customs and Immigration Union. President Mark Weber says many of his members have found themselves doing as much tech support as they are screening passengers.

“We’re not public health experts,” he told CityNews.

“As things open up, and there’s less and less and less restrictions, it becomes more questionable what you need that app for, and what you’re collecting all of this data for, if you’re not doing the contact tracing and things have really opened up. So over time, I think we’re hoping the app is streamlined or eliminated, which would really help a lot.”

Amid major delays at airports in recent months, the union has also called for the addition of as many as 3,000 new hires, as it bargains with the federal government over a new collective agreement.

-With files from Martin MacMahon