The government of Canada announced 04FEB that it's extending pre-boarding testing and arrival screening requirements for air travellers from China, Hong Kong and Macau until 05APR.
The measures were originally put in place, as Open Jaw reported, on 05JAN for 30 days; they have been extended as they were set to expire. The rules apply to all travellers on flights arriving from those destinations, regardless of nationality or vaccination status.
Ottawa says the extension is "in response to the increasing spread of COVID-19 and its variants in the People's Republic of China and limited epidemiological and viral genomic sequence data available on these cases." Specifically, the ministry of Health cites:
- continued reports of a dramatic increase of COVID-19 cases in China since the lifting of its domestic COVID-19 restrictions;
- limited epidemiological data available from China, including with respect to genomic sequencing and potential variants of concern;
- the potential impact of China's reopening on Canada's health care system; and
- responses of partner countries and international organizations.
The Public Health Agency of Canada's statement continues: "despite the data provided by China thus far, on-going gaps in data availability remain a significant concern. Extending these temporary health measures will provide time for new, reliable data sources to be made available and allow time for expected domestic waves in China to subside."
Ottawa says the measures will continue to be reassessed with additional data and as time goes by.
Additional information on these border measures is available at this government of Canada travel advisory web page: COVID-19 pre-boarding test requirements for air travel from China, Hong Kong and Macao.
