U.S. Border Closures with Canada Extended till July 21

Update (Jun. 19, 2021) – Coronavirus restrictions on travel across the border between U.S. and Canadian will be extended until July 21, Canada’s public safety minister official announced Friday. “In coordination with the U.S., we are extending restrictions on non-essential international travel and with the United States until July 21st, 2021,” Bill Blair, Canada’s Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, said on Twitter. The announcement comes just a few days before the latest extension was due to expire on June 21.

Canada-U.S. land crossings have been closed to nonessential travel since March 2020, when the public health measures were imposed to help prevent Covid-19’s spread.

Update (Apr. 21, 2021) – The United States’ land borders with Canada and Mexico will remain restricted to nonessential travel for at least another month. According to the Department of Homeland Security the border closures have been extended until May 21.

“To deter the spread of #COVID19 and protect our citizens, the United States is continuing restrictions on non-essential travel at our land borders through May 21, while maintaining the flow of essential trade and travel as we have for over a year,” DHS announced via tweet.

The agency added that it is “guided by science and public health data and engaged in discussions with Canada and Mexico about easing restrictions as health conditions improve.”

Update (Mar. 19, 2021) – United States’ land borders with Canada and Mexico will be closed to nonessential travel until at least April 21.

“To prevent the further spread of COVID-19, and in coordination with our partners in Canada and Mexico, the United States is extending the restrictions on nonessential travel at our land borders through April 21, while ensuring continued flows of essential trade and travel,” the Department of Homeland Security announced via tweet.

Update (Jan. 16, 2021) – United States’ borders with Canada and Mexico will remain closed for yet another month. The land borders between the three countries will be closed until at least Feb. 21. This is the latest extension of the closure that has been in place for nearly a year now.

“We are working closely with Mexico & Canada to keep essential trade & travel open while also protecting our citizens from the virus,” DHS announced in a tweet. “DHS is working closely with our counterparts in Mexico and Canada to identify appropriate public health conditions to safely ease restrictions in the future and support U.S. border communities.”

DHS noted that the new extension could be subject to further review by President-elect Joe Biden and his pick to head the agency, Alejandro Mayorkas. Factors that may warrant further review include the degree of health risk indicated in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s travel health notices for Canada and Mexico, which are currently at the agency’s highest threat level of 4.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also announced the closure in a similar tweet, saying that his country will “continue to do whatever is necessary to keep Canadians safe.”

The closures apply to all land and sea borders. Americans can still fly to either country. Mexico has actually been a popular vacation destination in recent months for Americans. Canada on the other hand has it more difficult for Americans to fly there. According to the official website for the Government of Canada, people entering from the U.S. must prove they are traveling for an essential purpose, along with not presenting COVID-19 symptoms and planning to quarantine for 14 days upon arrival. And as of Jan. 7, the country is now requiring a negative COVID-19 test for anyone arriving by air.

To date, United States counts a total of 23.6M Covid-19 cases and 393K deaths. Mexico has 1.61M cases 139K deaths while Canada has 699K cases and 17,780 deaths. When calculated based on Covid-19 casualties per million inhabitants, US is currently at 1,200, Mexico 1,104 and Canada 515.