Canada to drop COVID-19 vaccine mandate at border, make ArriveCAN optional: source
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau agreed to scrap the country’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate at the border and make the ArriveCAN app optional for travellers entering Canada, Global News has learned.
The decision to let the current measures expire on Sept. 30 as planned was made Thursday, according to a senior government source. The federal government is still deciding whether to maintain the requirement for passengers to wear face masks on trains and airplanes and will be discussed at cabinet this afternoon, the source said.
Multiple government sources told Global News earlier this week the Liberal government was drafting plans to ease border restrictions.
A government source said Tuesday the plan still needed to be “finalized” by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau before it could be officially announced.
Until now, foreign nationals were typically not allowed to travel to Canada unless they had completed a primary series of an approved COVID-19 vaccine, unless they qualified for an exception. The current border measures were set to expire on Sept. 30 after being extended in late June.
