Federal health minister Jean-Yves Dulos announced on Monday that the federal government would be easing multiple travel restrictions for vaccinated Canadians.
As of Feb. 28, Canadians will have the option of presenting a negative rapid antigen test or a molecular PCR test in order to meet pre-entry requirements.
Unvaccinated Canadians will still be required to be tested on arrival, and a mandatory 14-day quarantine is still in force, but unvaccinated children will no longer have to self-isolate for 14 days before returning to school or daycare.
Travelers can still be subject to random molecular tests at the airport but will not be required to enter quarantine while they wait for their results.
The federal government is also adjusting its travel health notice and will no longer advise Canadians to travel for essential purposes only.
Despite the changes, unvaccinated Canadians are still barred from boarding domestic and international flights or rail.
The decision to alter travel requirements comes one day after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked the Emergencies Act to quash protests demanding the end of COVID-19 restrictions across Canada.
On Tuesday, the Quebec government also announced that it would be phasing out its vaccine passport system beginning on March 14.
The travel industry has been hard hit by federal and provincial COVID-19 public health orders.
Estimates claim that tourism in Canada collapsed by over 50% during the pandemic. Before the outbreak of COVID-19 in Canada, the industry was producing $105 billion in revenue a year but after lockdowns that fell to $53 billion.
Recently, the Crown corporation VIA Rail asked the federal government for a taxpayer bailout after it faced a 98% decline in revenues due to federal vaccine mandates and restrictions.
