(Washington) Starting early next week, travelers from Canada and around the world who want to travel to the United States by air will need to be tested for COVID-19 no more than 24 hours before scheduled time of their departure.
The current deadline for adequately vaccinated people is 72 hours, but President Joe Biden is reducing it in order to curb the spread of the Omicron variant.
On Wednesday, the US administration had not yet announced its intentions regarding travelers arriving in the United States at land border crossings that have admitted for less than a month vaccinated foreigners from Canada and Mexico for non-travel. -essential.
For its part, Canada requires all air travelers to undergo a screening test upon arrival at a Canadian airport, whether or not they are vaccinated against COVID-19, and to self-isolate while awaiting a negative result. . However, this measure does not apply to travelers from the United States.
The Government of Canada has so far not decided whether this exemption for American travelers will remain in place. The Minister of Health, Jean-Yves Duclos, intends to consult the provinces and territories to this effect, but his colleague from Transport, Omar Alghabra, refused on Wednesday to indicate whether a decision was imminent.