According to the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), 190 fines have been imposed on travelers who refuse to provide COVID-19 vaccination information when entering Canada Only. The ArriveCAN app has become a must for air travelers and motorists.
"It's a very limited case given the total number of travelers entering our country," PHAC vice president Jennifer Lutfallah told the House Transportation Committee on Friday.
The Commission met with Transport Minister Omar Alghabra to ask questions about airport and land border crossing delays this summer. .
A Conservative MP points to his ArriveCAN as a source of congestion at customs clearance.
However, I've heard that the Commission's outright refusal to use an app is relatively rare.
Mr. Lutfahrer, who was also present as a witness at the Commission hearings, said that those fined for "arriveCAN violations" were "habitual offenders." , refused to submit papers, refused to submit papers, or said that they "did not want to comply with public health measures."
Failure to use ArriveCAN could result in fines of up to $5,000, the federal government has warned,that he This is the case for the air traveler since November and his driver since February 2021. { .
"Tickets are not the first option," she said.
Quarantine check-in
International travelers who do not submit information through ArriveCAN or have not been vaccinated are allowed to return home, but Isolate and get tested for COVID-19 twice weekly . A reminder will be sent through the
app to quarantine or inspection. Lutfara said you might be able to make a phone call too.
Public Health also conducts in-person checks "based on the risk an individual may pose for non-compliance," she said.
} " In very limited circumstances, after on-site verification, usually done by a security company, to the local police."
Lutfallah said he did not have statistics on how many face-to-face checks were made .
Minister defends app
} At Friday's conference, Conservative and Liberal MPs also filed competing lawsuits over the monopoly or maintenance of the controversial ArriveCAN app }
"It would be easy just to enumerate the people who support it. And that's just the government. That's adding delay.
WATCH / Transport Minister defends ArrriveCAN app
Transport Minister Answers Questions at Commission Hearing on Airport Delays
According to Lantsman , front-line border agents blame the app for the long lines.
In July, a trade union representing Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) workers said workers were required to spend , causing apps to become overwhelmed with congestion. said to be connected I was. Time to help difficult travelers fill out.
However, at a committee meeting on Friday, the CBSA's vice president for travelers said that her 99.5% of air travelers and just over 90% of her drivers had completed the ArriveCAN app. said to arrive at the border.
"Without ArriveCAN, individual processing would take far more time than it does now," she said Denis Vinette . ``It's a very efficient tool.''
Alghabra notes that continued labor shortages at airports are the "root cause" of congestion, 139} said it wasn't an app.
"We've seen significant improvements in the last two months," he said of airport problems,referring to recent statistics on flight cancellations and delays for the first week of August. He quoted compared to a month ago.
Alghabra said he was aware of communities in the border areas who had warned of problems with the app.
But at the airport, "There is absolutely no evidence that ArriveCAN is causing problems."
