After being closed for nearly 19 months due to the COVID-19 pandemic, on November 8th 2021 the United States land border officially opened to all fully vaccinated Canadians. US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has announced they will be staffing their border at pre-pandemic levels, but warns that wait times may be longer than in the past. This is because border agents will be randomly checking that Canadian citizens and permanent residents have been fully vaccinated against COVID, which is now a requirement for crossing the border.
Canadians interested in visiting USA will also need to provide a negative COVID test from within 72h of their arrival at the border. If flying into an American airport, the negative COVID-19 test must be from within 3 days of the flight’s scheduled departure. Even though the Canadian border requires a negative PCR test, Antigen tests are acceptable at the American border. This is great news as Antigen tests are substantially less expensive than PCR tests.
If a Canadian has a criminal record, such as a summary or indictable conviction for possession of drugs, assault (including domestic violence), or theft, they may be considered criminally inadmissible to the United States and could be denied entry. Even though it is difficult for Americans to enter Canada with a DUI, drunk driving convictions typically do not prevent a Canadian from being allowed to enter the US. If anyone has questions about crossing the land border between Canada and the United States, they can contact the US border services or Canada border services for more information.
It will be interesting to see how many Canadians end up visiting the United States over the coming months. Will traffic return to pre-pandemic levels, or will the hassle of getting a COVID test dissuade many people from travelling? Will some Canadians avoid America due to their higher case numbers? Will the fear of getting sick and incurring an expensive medical bill while in the USA scare some people away? Obviously non-vaccinated Canadians will be unable to travel, so that alone will likely keep the numbers at least 15% below normal. Dealing with long lines while entering USA, as well as at the Canadian border upon return, will also likely reduce the number of day trips taken.
