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Mandatory random COVID-19 testing for fully vaccinated air travellers resuming next week
A traveller walks past a mandatory COVID-19 testing sign at Pearson International Airport in Toronto. Random testing for fully vaccinated travellers will be conducted outside of airports starting July 19. (Carlo Allegri/Reuters)
The federal government has announced that it will be resuming mandatory random COVID-19 testing for international travellers arriving at four major airports next week.
Ottawa had initially suspended random testing for fully vaccinated travellers last month after airport authorities urged the government to drop the program, saying it was causing long delays at airports, although testing remained in place for those not considered fully vaccinated.
But fully vaccinated travellers will once again be subject to mandatory testing, although the government is moving the testing out of airports to nearby off-site locations, such as pharmacies. Travellers can also book a virtual self-swab appointment.
Fully vaccinated travellers arriving in Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver and Montreal could be subject to random testing starting Tuesday.
To qualify as a fully vaccinated traveller, a person must have received two doses of a recognized vaccine (like Pfizer, Moderna or Astra-Zeneca) or one shot of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
Detecting new strains
The government maintains that random testing for air travellers is necessary to help detect new COVID-19 variants.
