Canada Is Changing COVID-19 Travel Rules For Fully Vaccinated Americans Next Month

The Government of Canada has announced changes to COVID-19 travel rules that will allow Americans who meet certain criteria to come to Canada for non-essential reasons.

The new rules will take effect on August 9, 2021.

Courtesy of Health Canada

As of that date, American citizens and permanent residents living in the U.S. who have had the "full series of a vaccine" for at least 14 days will be able to enter the country for non-essential travel.

The new rule will only apply to travellers who have had a vaccine that has been approved by the Government of Canada: Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, AstraZeneca/COVISHIELD and Janssen (Johnson & Johnson).

These travellers will have to have a copy of their vaccination documentation to enter Canada.

According to information shared with Narcity and MTL Blog, they'll also still have to fill out the ArriveCan app, "meet the pre-entry testing requirements" and submit a quarantine plan in case of a situation in which they don't "meet all of the conditions required to be exempt from quarantine."

In addition, Canada is opening up five additional international airports to flights carrying international passengers:

• Halifax Stanfield International Airport;
• Québec City Jean Lesage International Airport;
• Ottawa Macdonald–Cartier International Airport;
• Winnipeg James Armstrong Richardson International Airport;
• and Edmonton International Airport.

This change, along with the elimination of the hotel quarantine for travellers arriving by air, will also take effect on August 9.

Keep in mind that despite the rule changes, "the Government of Canada continues to advise Canadians to avoid non-essential travel outside of Canada — international travel increases your risk of exposure to COVID-19 and its variants, as well as of spreading it to others," according to the news release.

On September 7, the government plans to allow non-essential travel from any country so long as travellers have been fully vaccinated.