The Canadian government has extended international border restrictions along with the closure of the US-Canada border again for a month till June 21, 2021. This officially means that it has been 15 months since these restrictions were first put in place in March 2020.
However, according to the press reports, the Canadian government is just getting started on the discussion to reopen the US-Canada border. The government is considering adopting a new system that will allow fully vaccinated people to travel between the two countries without providing any negative Covid-19 test or a 14-day quarantine plan.
This approach is in line with Canada’s plans to adopt “vaccine passports” to allow the free movement of vaccinated people. However, it has not been approved yet. The US-Canada border was closed in March last year to curb the spread of Covid-19 infections. As expected, this measure affected the airline and tourism industry.
When Can the US-Canada Border Be Expected to Reopen?
Both the US and Canada are struggling to cope with the third wave of the pandemic, even with vaccinations rolled out and ready to use. Canada is struggling more so as it does not have a domestic production of vaccines and therefore needs to procure them internationally.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has reassured the population that everyone in Canada will be fully vaccinated by September. So, it can be expected that the US-Canada border will gradually reopen as other restrictions are lifted.
