Feds clarify new travel rules, testing at airports still ‘ramping up’

The federal government attempted to clear up confusion surrounding Canada’s new travel restrictions on Friday.

Canada’s Minister of Health, Jean-Yves Duclos, spoke about how the government’s arrival testing and isolation rules, put in place to due to the Omicron variant, are being “progressively” implemented.

Some Canadians arriving back in the country have complained of confusing rules that are hard to follow, and say they need better information from the federal government on how to get home.

Duclos said last week that the new measures would take hold immediately, he could not give a timeline for when the on-arrival test and isolation rules would be fully implemented at all airports, only to say the rules would be “ramping up over time across the country.”

“The speed varies with airports,” said Duclos.

He says staffing, physical space and available tests are among the factors that need to be sorted out at each airport.

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The new measures mean Canadians, permanent residents and fully vaccinated international travellers arriving at Canadian airports from non-U.S. destinations will be tested on arrival, or receive a test to take home.

They must then self-isolate until they receive negative test results, which the government says could take up to three days. If they test positive then they must quarantine for 14 days.

Unvaccinated travellers will be required to remain in a designated quarantine facility for their entire quarantine period.

Anyone arriving on a connecting flight will get tested on arrival or receive a take-home test and continue to their final destination.

Vancouver International and Toronto’s Pearson are among the airports considering a combination of onsite and take-home testing to help keep people moving through an already jam-packed arrivals areas.

There is still no mention of the new mandatory testing rules on Health Canada’s website.

The United States has not been included in any new restrictions despite confirming cases of the new Omicron variant. Duclos conceded there will be community spread in the U.S., but says there is none of “significant magnitude” at this time. So for the time being, things will remain the same at Canada’s land borders.

Federal minister of health, Jean-Yves Duclos, explains why the US is not included in the no-fly list meant to keep the Omicron variant out of Canada. @CityNewsTO pic.twitter.com/omIZLa6dMv

— Mark Douglas (@DouglasCityNews) December 3, 2021

“No intention at this time to move away from our focus of airports,” says Duclos. “That is what we are going to invest our resources in because that’s what public health officials are recommending.”

He says the no-fly list is for countries with obvious signs of travellers with Omicron, and the more general set of rules are in place for everywhere else.

“We are working very closely with our American friends, I’ve been in contact with them over the last few days. We know that this is a matter of common interest because of our land border.”

The federal government has implemented a travel ban on 10 African nations, any foreign nationals who have travelled through the country in the last two weeks are temporarily barred from entering the country.

An Ontario infectious disease specialist says there is evidence testing all travellers before and after they arrive in Canada will identify most cases of COVID-19 coming into the country.

Dr. Zain Chagla says playing “whack-a-mole” with travel bans affecting only some countries is based on political expediency, not science.

He points to the start of the pandemic when Canada’s travel policies targeted China and Iran, and COVID-19 rapidly entered Canada from the United States and western Europe.

Chagla says Omicron is already spreading in multiple countries not targeted by Canada’s travel ban including the United States, which isn’t even being subjected to enhanced testing policies yet.

With files from CityNews reporter Mark Douglas and the Canadian Press