NCPR - Canada is dropping all COVID-19-era restrictions for people entering the country by air, land, or sea.
Canadian health minister Jean-Yves Duclos made the announcement Monday morning.
"This includes the removal of all federal testing, quarantine, and isolation requirements, as well as the mandatory submission of health information in ArriveCAN," Duclos said.
Beginning October 1st, Americans entering Canada will no longer have to use the ArriveCAN app or provide proof of vaccination. Canada will also suspend random COVID-19 testing at the border. And it's dropping mask requirements on planes and trains.
Duclos said the changes don't mean Canada is declaring the pandemic over. But its data indicates domestic transmission is a bigger problem.
Canada imposed strict border-crossing restrictions in March 2020 at the beginning of the pandemic. It began reopening the border to non-essential travel in July 2021, but was requiring all travelers to register with the ArriveCAN app.
North Country lawmakers, who have worried for two years that cross-border travel restrictions were hurting the regional economy, applauded Monday's announcement. Congresswoman Elise Stefanik called the move "a critical step forward" to normalizing economic relations with Canada.
This story originally reported by David Sommerstein for North Country Public Radio