Canada will require air passengers to submit a negative COVID-19 test to enter the country, officials announced on Wednesday.
Air travelers to Canada will have to do a negative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test 72 hours after boarding, which Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc said will likely be up and running in a week Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reported.
Canada currently requires those entering the country to keep quarantine for 14 days, which Public Security Minister Bill Blair said during a news conference that he would not be affected by the new restrictions.
“This is not an alternative to quarantine,” said Blair, according to CBC. “It is an additional layer.”
Blair also countered calls from some to reduce the 14-day quarantine period, saying “at the moment, we should only consider testing as an additional layer of defense against the disease,” according to Yahoo News. He cited the mandate as “Canada’s most effective line of defense to keep the disease out of Canada”.
Disobedience from the quarantine period can result in up to six months in prison or up to $ 750,000 in fines.
Transport Minister Marc Garneau is expected to reveal more details about the test requirement on Thursday, the network noted. Blair announced that Ottawa was exploring the testing facility at land entry points into the country.
The country has also banned all flights from the UK amid the outbreak of a new COVID-19 strain considered more contagious, although Canada has already confirmed strain cases within its borders.
The restrictions will also follow the condemnation of Ontario Prime Minister Doug Ford of his finance minister’s holiday on the French island of St. Barts during the holiday. Ford called the trip “unacceptable” because the government is asking people to avoid non-essential travel, the Associated Press reported.