The Canada-U.S. border has been shuttered to non-essential traffic since 21MAR, and that could continue for some time yet, with experts predicting it won't reopen until next year, CBCNews reports.
The latest border closure for all modes of transportation - land, marine, air or rail - expires on 21AUG. Both countries review their border closure agreement every 30 days.
With COVID-19 cases still surging in several U.S. states, U.S. Immigration lawyer Len Saunders believes the border could stay closed for another six months.
"There's really no reason why the Canadian government, at this point, would want to open it up and subject Canadians to an increased rate of COVID infections," he told CBC.
Many Canadians have also made it clear that they want the border to stay shut for now.
When Leger Marketing asked 1,500 Canadians last month if they thought the Canada-U.S. border should reopen at the end of July, 86% said they were opposed to the idea.
Given public opinion, economist Moshe Lander said it would be "political suicide" for Canadian politicians to contemplate reopening the border right now.
Lander predicts a possible border reopening in middle to late 2021 — if there's enough confidence at that point that the virus is under control.
Canadians can fly or drive to the U.S. for essential travel purposes only. The same applies to Americans entering Canada.
Foreign nationals, including United States citizens, can travel to Canada only if they’re eligible, meaning immediate family members of Canadians or those traveling for essential purposes.
The federal government recently loosened its travel restrictions to allow Americans to visit immediate family in Canada, including dependent children, spouses and common-law partners.
Anna Kroupina Journalist
Anna is OJ's newest member and she joins the team as a writer/reporter. She co-writes the daily news and covers events. Although she's new to the industry, pursuing a career path in travel/tourism has been a goal since her first family road trip to the Florida Keys sparked a desire to discover the world and this exhilarating, fast-paced industry.
