CONFIRMED: The vaccination requirement to board planes in Canada is ending

It’s now confirmed: Canada will FINALLY drop its stupid and useless vaccination requirement for boarding planes departing from a Canadian airport (and for some trains as well). But unfortunately, despite the recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO), there’s no change at all to the entry rules (nor to the illogical mask requirement on planes).

Here are the details that were just announced and the 2 simple steps to know the travel rules.

(And along the way, I’m also reminding you why the requirement was absurd in the first place and not based on science, for those who don’t really know the facts on that topic).

Overview of the announced changes

The federal government has just confirmed this:

• The vaccination requirement to board planes and trains will be eliminated 
• The vaccination requirement for transportation employees also
• It takes effect on June 20, 2022, at 12:01 AM (Eastern time)
• The measures could be reinstated “if necessary”
• NOTHING else changes

That’s all that changes. So, before I get asked 25 times, “But is X changing?” I’ll say it again: what’s written here is changing and everything that’s not written here isn’t changing.

We’d love to see ALL travel restrictions eliminated, of course, as recommended by WHO experts for several months. But we’re talking about the Canadian government, so it’s not surprising that it isn’t the case.

Here’s the visual version.

All Canadians have always had the right to enter Canada and obviously, they still do (if you knew how many people think it’s now allowed; everyone still mixes up all the rules even after 2 years, unfortunately).

So, to be very clear, I’ll summarize:

• Canada’s entry rules are not changing at all
• The only remaining entry requirement is to complete a form in the ArriveCAN app if you’re fully vaccinated 
• The Canadian definition of “fully vaccinated” isn’t changing (2 doses or 1 dose of Johnson & Johnson)
• The entry requirements for unvaccinated travelers all remain in place
  • Mandatory pre-entry test
  • 14-day quarantine at home
  • Free testing upon arrival (on days 1 and 8)
• Some unvaccinated children are exempt, no change there either
• Foreign travelers (non-Canadians) must still be vaccinated to enter Canada
• The mask requirement on planes (which makes no sense when there’s no such requirement anywhere else in the country) remains in place unlike in most European countries
• These changes have nothing to do with other countries’ entry rules

It’s as simple as that.

Vaccination (by the current definition) is not all that effective at preventing transmission at this point, as per all the health experts. It just made no sense to ban unvaccinated travelers. At least that is ending and everyone will be able to travel.

Now, I’ll summarize the 2 extremely simple steps to know the travel rules for ANY destination.

The 2 steps to know travel rules

With the vaccination requirement for flights and trains departing from Canada being lifted, we’re back to just 2 steps like almost every country in the world has always had (requiring vaccination for all flights and imprisoning citizens in their own country is something no one but Trudeau did — but unvaccinated foreign travelers, on the other hand, have always been allowed to sit on the same flights, that was “The Science™”).

Here are the 2 steps:

• Step 1: Check the entry rules of the country you’re going to
• Step 2: Check the entry rules for Canada

It’s not a complicated process, it could hardly be easier to understand.

Step 1: Check the entry rules of the country you’re going to

All the rules of all the countries are in the same place! This too could hardly be any simpler!

It’s always on the IATA website. It’s sometimes a little harder to read there since it’s written by bureaucrats, so we’ve created a simpler guide with every country’s entry rules (which will be updated this Thursday to reflect the most recent changes).

There are 52 countries that have eliminated all restrictions for everyone and there are 150 countries that have eliminated test requirements for vaccinated travelers.

Step 2: Check the entry rules for Canada

I already explained Canada’s entry rules above but for simplicity I’ll relist them:

• Declaration to fill in the ArriveCAN app or website
  • It’s easy and will take you no more than 5 minutes
  • Pro tip: a NEXUS card will speed up the arrival process
• Random arrival testing (SUSPENDED UNTIL JUNE 30TH AT LEAST)
  • Tests are free taxpayer-funded (over $1 billion)
  • No requirement to isolate while waiting for results
  • Few travelers are selected
  • Travelers with proof of a positive test are exempt
• No mandatory vaccination, same as it’s always been since the start of the pandemic (for Canadians)
• Pre-entry test required only for unvaccinated travelers
  • 3 options: negative antigen test, negative molecular test, positive molecular test
    • Negative antigen test: the day of your flight or the full day before (NOT “24 hours”)
    • Negative molecular test: within the last 72 hours
    • Positive molecular test: within the last 10 to 180 days
  • Children under 5 years old are exempt
  • Children from 5 to under 12 are exempt if they travel with a vaccinated parent
  • Travelers only transiting through Canada are exempt
  • Entry by land without a valid test is “allowed,” but you risk getting fined
  • Virtual self-tests with supervision are accepted
• Additional rules for unvaccinated travelers
  • 14-day quarantine (some kids are exempt)
  • Mandatory testing upon arrival (on days 1 and 8)

That’s it!

While you await our new resources page with a detailed FAQ section, you can read our complete guide on how to travel to the United States to see one very concrete example from A to Z.

And for any other country in the world, follow the same guide by replacing the USA entry rules with the other country’s entry rules (refer to our guide to every country’s entry rules). Simple!

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Summary

It’s finally official: Canada is dropping its vaccination requirement to board a plane in a Canadian airport (it also currently applies to some train travel). That’s really all that’s changing. This leaves just 2 easy steps to travel: check the rules of the country you’re going to, and check Canada’s rules for your return. It could hardly be an easier process.

What would you like to know about traveling during the pandemic? Tell us in the comments below.

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