Random arrival testing to resume at off-site locations

Random testing resumed on July 19, 2022 for fully vaccinated travellers arriving in Canada by air to the four major Canadian airports, Vancouver, Calgary, Montreal and Toronto. After a brief suspension of the program, testing locations for all air travellers, including fully or partially vaccinated and unvaccinated people, are now located outside of airports in an attempt to reduce delays. Travellers must have been vaccinated with a primary series of an accepted COVID-19 vaccine to be considered fully vaccinated. Boosters are not required at this point in time. Travellers who do not qualify as fully vaccinated, unless exempt, must continue to quarantine for 14 days and test on Day 1 and Day 8. Testing remains an important part of the government's surveillance program to track the importation of COVID-19 virus into Canada and identify new variants of concern.

How does it work?
Air travellers who are selected for mandatory testing will receive an email notification within 15 minutes of passing through customs. The email will contain information to help them arrange for their test with a testing provider in their region, either via an in-person appointment at select testing provider locations and pharmacies, or a virtual appointment for a self-swab test. Passengers with connecting flights can go to participating testing sites at their final destinations or book virtual self-swab appointments. All travellers must continue to provide mandatory travel information through the ArriveCAN app or website within 72 hours before their arrival in Canada.

Where can I get tested?
The notification e-mail will indicate where you can go to get tested in your area. Off-site arrival testing will be conducted by private laboratories, including Switch Health and LifeLabs, and pharmacies. As testing providers vary by province, you can visit the government website to find the nearest testing location.

Can I just take a rapid test at home?
Rapid antigen test are not accepted from travellers who have been randomly selected for arrival testing. Arrival testing must be performed by the contracted companies.

What if I recently recovered from COVID-19?
You can be exempt from random arrival testing if you can provide a positive molecular test taken between 10 and 180 days before arrival. Rapid test results are not accepted as proof of infection. While antibodies from an infection can help prevent getting the virus again, that protection does wane over time.

Do I have to pay for arrival testing?
No, the cost of the test is covered by the Canadian government.

What if my arrival test result is positive?
If you test positive on arrival, you must go into isolation for 10 days from the date of the test result. Your 10-day isolation is required, even if the isolation requirement is shorter in your province or territory. If you test negative but start experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, you still need to isolate for the same period.

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