Information for newcomers to Canada: changes to ArriveCAN

The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) is informing you of the importance of rebooting the ArriveCAN system on your electronic device on Monday. As of 00:01 hours on July 5 EST, ArriveCAN is launching an updated version of the program. It should be used by anyone intending to arrive in the country by air, sea or land. ArriveCAN can be downloaded as a mobile app, or you can create an account and log in online.

How to use ArriveCAN

You need to provide personal information to ArriveCAN within 72 hours (3 days) prior to your planned arrival in Canada. When working with ArriveCAN you will need to enter

1. Your necessary contact information.

2. Purpose of travel (e.g., tax exemption, work, study, family reunification or compassionate entry).

3. Date of arrival.

4. Name of port of entry or border crossing (for arrivals by sea or land).

5. Flight number, airport and airline name (for air passengers).

6. Information about your vaccination and provision of proof of vaccination on request.

7. If you are an airline passenger and not exempt from staying in a quarantine hotel, enter your 3-day quarantine hotel reservation code.

8. Information about your pre-test for COVID-19 and confirmation that you understand all testing requirements.

9. Information about countries you stayed in or visited in the 14 days before your arrival in Canada (excluding transit countries en route to Canada).

10. Your quarantine plan for your stay in Canada (if you are not exempt from quarantine). You will need to indicate here:

— Do you have housing where you can stay in quarantine for 14 days, or possibly longer.

— The address of the last place you completed your 14-day quarantine.

— Can you avoid any contact with other people who have not travelled with you while you are in a quarantine place.

— Whether you will have access to basic necessities (including water, food, medicine and warm clothing) without leaving your quarantine location.

— Will you be around people at increased risk of COVID-19 infection (65 years of age or older, with co-morbidities, immunocompromised).

— Will people who work or help in institutions, homes, or workplaces that have people at high risk of COVID-19 infection be in your quarantine area.

What do I do if I don't have a smartphone or computer?

If you are travelling without a smartphone, then send the information to ArriveCAN within 72 hours before you arrive in Canada by creating an account and logging in online. Then print that information out (or take a screenshot) and take it with you on your trip. If you are travelling with a smartphone but without the ArriveCAN app, then register in the system as well and get an electronic receipt or printout with your details using your computer.

If you don't have your own smartphone or computer with Internet access, then log in to ArriveCAN using Internet cafes.

What happens if I don't submit data to ArriveCAN?

You will not be denied boarding by air or a land border crossing. However, you will not have the right to refuse vaccinations in Canada, and you will face additional delays at the border (you will be asked detailed questions about your health status). You could face fines or other penalties.

If I am visiting Canada in transit?

Transit passengers who are travelling through Canada to another country and do not leave the secure area at the airport do not need to send their information to ArriveCAN.

Group feeding of data into ArriveCAN

If you are coming to Canada with loved ones, then take advantage of ArriveCAN's group filing option. One application can contain data from 1 to 8 people, including the main applicant. You can fill in data about your legal spouse (or common-law partner), your children (or children whose legal guardian you are) who are 18 years of age or younger. Or any other adult whose legal guardian you are.

A group application with ArriveCAN offers many advantages: all persons on the application form will reside together at the same address during quarantine or isolation (including the quarantine hotel).

How to use ArriveCAN for quarantine-free travel

You can be exempt from quarantine if you enter Canada under specific conditions. This includes if you are providing essential services and supporting the flow of essential goods or people.

If you are exempt from quarantine, you do not need to include a quarantine plan in your data sent to ArriveCAN. However, you must still provide your contacts, travel details and other information there. You will not need to fill out any reports through ArriveCAN after you enter Canada.

ArriveCAN and taxes

Find out if your trip is tax exempt. It is important to know that the ArriveCAN receipt only shows that you have successfully submitted all the required information. It does not confirm your eligibility to enter Canada or your travel tax exempt status. Your travel status will be determined at the border.

Receipt of an ArriveCAN receipt

After you send all the necessary information to ArriveCAN, the completed receipt will be displayed on your mobile device or monitor and then sent to your e-mail address. You will show it to the Canada Border Services officer at check-in.

You can have the receipt with you as a screenshot, in an application on your smartphone, as an e-mail or as a paper printout.

Can I submit information to ArriveCAN instead of someone else?

If you are not travelling but would like to help someone fill in their ArriveCAN registration application, you can do so by logging in online. Once you have filled in all the necessary information, print it out and give it to the traveler or send it to their email.

The traveler will be able to complete their post-border reports by making daily calls to 1-833-641-0343 during the 14-day quarantine period. The information he/she will report when calling must match the information you will send to ArriveCAN on his/her behalf.

What else you need to know about ArriveCAN

If you are travelling with a child whose only document is their birth certificate, you do not need to send their information to ArriveCAN. At the border crossing you will be asked to fill in an alternative document with the required information about the child.

Each released traveller must complete a personal application in ArriveCAN. He/she cannot use the group application.

If you have already sent your details to ArriveCAN and received a receipt, but have changed plans due to travel to Canada, then provide the system with the new details. ArriveCAN will delete your previous information.

If you are having problems with the application or logging in, please contact ArriveCAN for assistance.