NEW DELHI: Canada no longer requires passengers travelling on nonstops from India to get a Covid test done within 18 hours before departure. Starting Friday, it has also ended the need for third country testing for those coming on one-stops from India.
This means, people travelling from, say India to Canada via the Gulf/Europe/US will no longer need to be tested at the transit country before taking a connecting flight to their destination.
To be sure, Canada continues to require that all travellers, unless specifically exempted, have a valid negative pre-departure Covid-19 molecular test result taken within 72 hours before a scheduled flight to Canada.
Canada had on September 27, 2021, allowed resumption of directs flights from India, over five months after suspending the same during the deadly second Covid wave here, with stricter testing norms. The nonstops were, and continue to be, from Delhi. And passengers needed to obtain a pre-departure negative Covid-19 molecular result from a test done at Delhi Airport’s Genestrings Laboratory within 18 hours before their scheduled departure.
This stringent requirement goes now and the move could pave the way for direct flights between more Indian cities and Canada because as of now nonstops only to and from Delhi are allowed.
“Effective January 28, 2022, we’re removing the modified pre-departure Covid-19 test requirements for travellers on direct flights to Canada from India and Morocco, and the requirement for third country testing for travellers on indirect routes to Canada from these countries,” Transport Canada Tweeted on Friday.
Effective January 28, 2022, we’re removing the modified pre-departure #COVID19 test requirements for travellers on direct flights to Canada from #India and #Morocco, and the requirement for third country testing for travellers on indirect routes to Canada from these countries. https://t.co/07qv65DtIQ
— Transport Canada (@Transport_gc) January 28, 2022
In a statement, the Canadian government said it is from January 28, 2022, removing the modified pre-departure test requirements for travellers coming to Canada on direct or indirect flights from India or Morocco. “Travellers from these countries will no longer be required to obtain a valid negative pre-departure Covid-19 test from a third country. All travellers entering Canada are now subject to the same pre-entry test requirements, regardless of their departure country,” it said.
The Canadian government statement adds that “as travellers arriving in Canada by air may be required to be tested for Covid-19 before leaving the airport, they are strongly encouraged to pre-register with testing providers prior to travel. Pre-registration will help reduce congestion in airports and processing time for travellers in crowded areas. Registration upon arrival takes about 15 minutes, whereas testing itself takes 2-4 minutes for pre-registered travellers. Pre-registering for the test has no impact on selection for testing.”
The Government of Canada continues to advise Canadians to avoid non-essential travel outside of the country at this time. “All travellers eligible to enter Canada must complete the mandatory pre-departure molecular Covid-19 test unless exempt. Antigen tests are not accepted,” the statement added.
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