Government of Canada to remove pre-arrival Covid testing requirements on April 1
The Government of Canada just announced changes to their border measures that will affect International Students travelling to Canada. Effective April 1, 2022, fully vaccinated travellers will no longer need to provide a pre-entry Covid-19 test result to enter Canada by air, land or water. Fully vaccinated travellers arriving in Canada before April 1, 2022, must still have a valid pre-entry test.
As of April 1st, the following changes will come into effect:
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- Fully vaccinated travellers from any country entering Canada will no longer have to take a pre-arrival test (such as a PCR or rapid Antigen).
- On-arrival molecular testing for fully-vaccinated travellers may still be conducted on a random basis.
- Travellers who are randomly selected for arrival testing are not required to quarantine while awaiting their test result.
Accepted Vaccines for Travel
The following vaccines are accepted by the Government of Canada for the purpose of travel to and within Canada:
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- AstraZeneca/COVISHIELD (ChAdOx1-S, Vaxzevria, AZD1222)
- Bharat Biotech (Covaxin, BBV152 A, B, C)
- Janssen/Johnson & Johnson
- Moderna (mRNA-1273)
- Pfizer-BioNTech (Comirnaty, tozinameran, BNT162b2)
- Sinopharm BIBP (BBIBP-CorV)
- Sinovac (CoronaVac, PiCoVacc)
To qualify as a fully vaccinated traveller, you must have received, at least 15 calendar days by the day you travel:
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- at least 2 doses of a vaccine accepted by the Government of Canada for the purpose of travel
- or a mix of 2 accepted vaccines
- or at least 1 dose of the Janssen/Johnson & Johnson vaccine
All travellers continue to be required to submit their mandatory information via ArriveCAN, including proof of vaccination in English or French and a quarantine plan prior to arriving in Canada.
Further to this change, the Government of British Columbia recently announced that starting April 8, proof of vaccination will no longer be required to access businesses, events and services in BC.
VGC welcomes the recent changes as they simplify the arrival process for international students. We hope that this information helps you and your students plan ahead for a smooth journey to Canada. For any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to us directly.