CIMM – Proof of Vaccination Credentials – March 3, 2022
Key Messages
The Government of Canada has collaborated closely with the provinces and territories to implement a standardized, secured Canadian PVC to facilitate travel within and outside Canada and, where warranted, to be used for other domestic purposes.
All provinces and territories are now issuing a standardized, interoperable Canadian PVC.
The Canadian COVID-19 PVC is issued by provinces, and territories to individuals whose vaccination history is registered with that particular jurisdiction.
The funding provided supports the federal government’s work to develop the Canadian COVID-19 PVC. This includes the development of common technical specifications and technical support to provinces and territories for the development of their proof of vaccination issuance systems. It also supports the initial phase of maintaining the standard, such as addressing technical issues or responding to new developments in vaccination strategy (e.g. booster doses).
Since October 2021, the proof’s standardized format, with the Canada wordmark, has been shared with international partners to help foreign border officials recognize and accept it as a reliable and trusted Canadian document.
Government messaging has remained clear that travellers should note that having a Canadian COVID-19 PVC does not guarantee entry to another country or an exemption from local health measures.
Travellers should always check the Government of Canada’s travel advice and advisories, as well as the entry and public health requirements of their destination country, before booking their trip. They should also routinely check for the most up-to-date information on requirements for return travel into Canada, as well as provincial or territorial requirements.
Supplementary Messages
Status of Issuance
All 13 provinces and territories, are now offering the standardized Canadian COVID-19 PVCs to their residents. In certain specific cases, Canadian COVID-19 PVCs are also being offered by the Canadian Armed Forces.
Use of Proof of Vaccination Credentials
A PVC allows businesses (e.g. venue operators, restaurants), transportation companies (e.g. airlines, trains, and ferries) and border authorities (foreign and domestic) to assess a person’s vaccination history against the COVID-19 public health measures that apply in a given situation.
The Canadian COVID-19 PVC is intended for use for both international and domestic travel, and, where warranted, may be used for other domestic purposes.
Responsive – International Engagement
Canada is continuing to engage with key partners to promote the recognition and acceptance of Canada’s COVID-19 PVC in an effort to improve a Canadian traveller’s experience when outside of Canada.
Discussions have taken place with the top travel destinations for Canadian travellers and countries with major transit hubs in an effort to create a more streamlined and efficient border experience.
Responsive – Security and privacy of proof of vaccination
The Canadian COVID-19 PVC has safeguards built into the design, policies, procedures and technical systems to protect the privacy of Canadians.
The technology enables those with the right verification tools to detect tampering or forgery and gives assurance as to issuance by a trusted source (province, territory or federal issuer).
Provinces, territories, Indigenous organizations and select federal departments are and will remain the custodians of Canadian’s health data, including that which forms the basis of the Canadian PVC.
The Canadian COVID-19 PVC includes only the holder’s name, date of birth and COVID-19 vaccination history. It does not have the person’s health card number or other health information.
Responsive – Eligibility and Accessibility
Getting a PVC for international travel is voluntary and will be available to all those vaccinated in Canada.
Canadians who do not have a PVC may still be able to travel outside the country, depending on the airline regulations and destination country requirements. Travellers should always check the Government of Canada’s travel advice and advisories, as well as the entry and public health requirements of their transit and destination countries, before booking a trip.
We recognize that there are segments of the population who may not be eligible for a PVC, such as those who have difficulty in accessing vaccines or, those who cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons. Options to address the circumstances of unvaccinated groups are being examined while balancing Canada’s public health considerations.
The Government of Canada is working closely with Indigenous partners, provinces and territories to ensure PVCs are available, free of charge, in multiple formats, such as digital or paper format, as well as accessible online, in person or by phone.
Responsive – Federal Funding
The federal government received approximately 30 million dollars to cover expenses for the Canadian COVID-19 Proof of Vaccination Credential (PVC) project in the 2021-2022 fiscal year.
Several federal departments, including IRCC, the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) worked together to ensure provinces and territories were supported in issuing PVCs and that all those vaccinated in Canada could access a safe and secure credential.
To do so, the federal government undertook a significant amount of work in preparing the technical specifications of the pan-Canadian, standardized PVC credential and provided a range of technical support to provinces and territories for the development of their PVC systems.
The federal government also:
developed a support model to ensure clients from across Canada could receive assistance from Service Canada, via web, telephone and in-person channels to respond to enquiries about the PVC project.
embarked on an international engagement campaign, which continues to this day, to ensure the Canadian PVC can be used and accepted at international borders.
Responsive – Funding for Provinces and Territories
All provinces and territories are now issuing the Canadian COVID‑19 PVC. In the December 2021 Economic and Fiscal Update, the establishment of a COVID-19 Proof of Vaccination Fund was announced to compensate provinces and territories for the cost of implementing their respective proof of vaccination programs. Work on establishing this fund is ongoing.
Background
Canada’s PVC is a secure document containing information about the traveller’s COVID-19 vaccination information. This information allows foreign and domestic border authorities in possession of the right tools, including the CBSA, to electronically verify the information in order to assess the traveller against COVID-19 public health measures. It may also be validated and authenticated against local public health rules. IRCC has been coordinating these implementation efforts alongside the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), the CBSA, Transport Canada, Global Affairs Canada (GAC), and others.
In Canada, provincial and territorial governments are the main custodians of health data (with some exceptions), including vaccination data. The Government of Canada has worked closely with provinces and territories to develop a Canadian proof of vaccination that builds on that data, and that can be used by those vaccinated in Canada as a factual record of their vaccine history. PHAC, through its health tables, has been engaging with provinces and territories on proofs of vaccination for many months.