March 16, 2023 | Ottawa, ON | Public Health Agency of Canada

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, to protect the health and safety of Canadians, the Government of Canada has taken a prudent and measured approach to adjusting border measures. On January 5, 2023, in response to the surge of COVID-19 in the People’s Republic of China and given the limited data available at that time on those cases, the Government of Canada put in place temporary pre-departure test requirements for air travellers entering Canada from the People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong or Macao. Today, the Government of Canada announced it will remove those temporary measures.

As of 12:01 a.m. EDT on March 17, 2023, air travellers to Canada on flights originating from the People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong or Macao will no longer be required to provide evidence of a COVID-19 test result before boarding. This means that there will no longer be any federal COVID-19 border measures in place after that time.  

Since Canada and other countries put in place temporary border measures in January 2023, data from China, the international community, and wastewater sampling conducted in Canada, have not detected any new variants of concern. In addition, the COVID-19 situation in both China and Canada has improved, and the Canadian healthcare systems remain stable.

The Public Health Agency of Canada continues to recommend that individuals wear well-constructed and well-fitted masks during their travel on planes and in airports, or other crowded indoor settings. Individuals should not travel if they have symptoms of COVID-19.

The Government of Canada continues to work with international partners to enhance sequencing capacity and closely monitors the global epidemiology of COVID-19 and emerging novel variants of concern. The Government of Canada will not hesitate to adjust measures to protect the health and safety of people in Canada, should it be required.