Unvaccinated travel by air or rail is no longer an option to, from, or in Canada, as of Tuesday, November 30.
Officially, the policy began on October 30, but the past month has been a grace period to allow stragglers to catch up. During that time, travelers could provide a negative molecular COVID-19 test in lieu of a vaccine card. But no longer.
After Tuesday, anyone over the age of 12 wanting to board a plane or long-distance train in Canada must have been vaccinated at least two weeks prior to travel.
Previously, most airlines have been doing random spot-checks to make sure travelers are vaccinated, but they’ll be tightening their policies as well. Air Canada and West Jet, for instance, confirmed to reporters that they would be requiring proof of vaccination for everyone boarding as of Tuesday.
While it was previously scheduled, the more stringent requirement happens to come just as Canada is tightening borders and requiring heavier screening over the risk of the new Omicron variant. Due to its early identification there, Canadians traveling from southern Africa are also facing heavier screenings and mandatory quarantines. Early results suggest that Omicron is a greater threat to those who are already vaccinated than previous variants, but vaccinated individuals are still less likely to become infected and spread the variant.
“The variant of concern has certainly required us to consistently review those measures in real time,” Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino said Tuesday.
Exemptions will be only for those with doctor-confirmed medical exemptions, the unvaccinated traveling to remote communities where air travel is the only option, and those passing through Canada who do not deplane. Those who qualify for exemption will still be required to provide a negative test, taken within 72 hours of travel. All conveyances will still require masks to be worn at all times.
This mandate is part of why Canada has announced a standardized proof-of-vaccination document, along with a federally-approved app for carrying your proof on your phone.
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