All travellers flying out of Pearson Airport in Mississauga must be fully vaccinated by Oct. 30
Published October 6, 2021 at 1:55 pm
All travellers aged 12 and older looking to board flights at Pearson Airport in Mississauga—and airports across Canada—must be fully vaccinated by Oct. 30 or they will not be allowed on the airplane.
The same goes for those looking to board VIA Rail and Rocky Mountaineer trains as well as people looking to travel on non-essential marine vessels such as cruise ships, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced this afternoon.
However, there will reportedly be a brief transition phase to allow travellers to show a negative COVID-19 molecular test result instead of proof of vaccination, until Nov. 30.
The new travel restrictions are part of the Trudeau government’s mandatory vaccine policy unveiled today by the prime minister. The mandate also requires public servants to either get their shots by month’s end or be forced into an unpaid leave of absence.
“For the vast, vast majority of people, the rules are very simple–to travel, you’ve got to be vaccinated,” Trudeau said.
“If you haven’t gotten your shots yet, but want to travel this winter, let me be clear, there will only be a few extremely narrow exceptions, like a valid medical condition.”
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It will be up to air, rail and marine operators to establish processes to verify vaccine status, according to reports, and the government expects provincial vaccine passports to be accepted as proof of status.
A standardized, pan-Canadian proof of vaccination document for international travel is still in the works, but the details have not yet been announced.
To qualify as a “fully vaccinated traveller,” a person must have received a full series of a Health Canada-approved COVID-19 vaccine, or a combination of approved shots, with the last dose having been received at least 14 days prior to the day of travel.
The plan comes as public health authorities are urging those not yet vaccinated to get a shot to curb a deadly resurgence of the virus in some provinces.
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