Even as borders re-open, Canadian government travel advisories may still be in place for certain destinations, or depending on your vaccine status, which may impact your travel insurance coverage. For Canadian government travel advisories, go to travel.gc.ca.

There are four levels of travel advisory. The two highest levels may be mentioned in a travel insurance policy and, if mentioned, can impact your coverage.

• Level 3 – “Avoid Non-Essential Travel”: means the government recommends against any non-essential travel to that country or region.
• Level 4 – “Avoid All Travel”: is the highest level and it states that Canadians should avoid all travel to a country or region and should come home if already there.  This can also apply to specific types of travel such as the former advisory to avoid all cruise ship travel outside of Canada. 

Effective February 28, 2022, the blanket Level 3 – “Avoid-Non-Essential Travel”  travel advisory was reduced to Level 2 - “Exercise a High Degree of Caution”, which means that the government no longer recommends that fully vaccinated Canadians avoid travel for non-essential purposes. However, we expect there will be some destinations the government deems safer than others and the advisories may become more specific by destination.  Also, depending on the destination, access may be easier for those who are vaccinated versus those who are not fully vaccinated.

KNOW YOUR TRIP – Ask your provider and check to see if any travel advisories are in place for your destination.

Before travelling outside of Canada, check for any new travel restrictions, guidelines, or requirements at your destination country such as:

• Status of allowing foreign visitors
• Proof of vaccination
• Requirements to be recognized as fully vaccinated at destination (i.e. timing of doses, requirement to have a  booster)
• Testing and Quarantine requirements upon arrival and/or the need for a recent negative COVID-19 test.
• Any other entry requirements i.e. proof of insurance, download local app, QR code, etc.

Entry requirements to Canada continue to be fluid. Be aware of re-entry requirements when returning home to Canada. More information can be found in the Returning Home section on this document,<link to Returning Home section>

An interruption of your trip may be caused by a positive test or temperature check. COVID-19 has significantly impacted the experience you will have on your trip. It is not just business as usual. It is extremely important to understand how your travel insurance will respond to some of these new types of events before you book a trip and again before you start your journey.

KNOW YOUR TRIP – Ask your provider and check available websites for details before travelling outside of your home province.

Travel within Canada is not the subject of Government of Canada advisories but may be impacted by provincial or federal restrictions, for example, there is currently a vaccination requirement to board a flight or train within Canada. You can find Government of Canada information on Travelling within Canada here including information on provincial restrictions and requirements for boarding flights and trains in Canada.

States of emergency, quarantine requirements, entry restrictions, curfews and other measures may be in place or be introduced by a province or region and that will mean restricted mobility. Check provincial/territorial websites for the most up-to-date information by province/territory.

If you are planning to travel within Canada, note that COVID-19 can also impact your plans and it is important to have travel insurance coverage to cover gaps in GHIP (Government Health Insurance Plans). Flights can be cancelled or interrupted due to COVID-19 complications. Contracting COVID-19 while travelling in another province can result in the same transportation and quarantine challenges you would face abroad, and you should contact your provider to find out how your policy will respond.

KNOW YOUR TRIP – Ask your provider and check available websites for details before travelling outside of your home province.

Your travel insurance policy may not specifically mention COVID-19. You should reach out to your provider to confirm coverage. You can also look for this type of language in your policy:

• something that says what happens when a Government of Canada travel advisory is in effect.  Typically this will appear in a section speaking to Exclusions.
• something that says how your coverage is impacted by an event or cause which is considered to be a “known event” at the time the insurance is purchased (for example – a global pandemic that we all know impacts the health and safety of travellers).
• specific mention of COVID-19, a pandemic, or an epidemic and how your coverage is impacted. An event like COVID-19 may be excluded or there may be specific coverage limits. A pandemic exclusion could mean that you are not covered even if you are travelling within Canada.

KNOW YOUR POLICY – When in doubt, reach out directly to your provider for absolute certainty. If your policy excludes COVID-19, your provider may have additional coverage you can purchase to cover COVID-19 related claims.

Some policies or plans will, but the answer depends on such factors as:

• when you bought your insurance and whether the trip cancellation/interruption wording excludes trips booked when a travel advisory is in effect,
• whether your policy excludes claims for trips cancelled or interrupted due to an event or cause that is already known (such as COVID-19, a global event which has been in the news cycle daily for many months), or
• whether trip cancellation/interruption for COVID-related events is excluded entirely.

KNOW YOUR POLICY – For specific details on how your insurance will respond, contact your provider.

If you file a claim for a trip that was cancelled by the travel supplier your claim may not be paid by your travel insurance provider because of a clause in your policy which states that your insurer will only reimburse you for pre-paid travel expenses that are non-refundable or non-transferable.  This pandemic has turned the world upside down in many ways.  One of the major changes we have seen is that, even on travel bookings that were originally purchased on a non-refundable basis, travel suppliers are still issuing refunds or future travel credits on trips cancelled due to COVID-19.   Some of these credits are valid for up to one or two years and some do not expire.

There is a basic premise applicable to this type of insurance that you should not “gain” by claiming under your policy.  You can be made “whole” if you have purchased adequate insurance, but you should not come out ahead.

Example

If your insurer paid your $1,000 claim for a cancelled trip and you later used a $1,000 credit to re-book that trip, you would essentially be “gaining” from your insurance contract.  You would be taking a $1,000 trip and your insurance company would be paying for it.  Only in a situation where you would not be able to use the credit would you be eligible to submit the loss for consideration under your insurance policy.

KNOW YOUR POLICY – Contact your provider for more details.

First, you need to check with your provider to see if their product covers just emergency medical claims or if it also includes cancellation or interruption coverage as well.  Some products may offer one but not both.  Having some amount of coverage for COVID-19 is obviously better than having no coverage while you are travelling.  How much is enough depends on many factors particular to your circumstances, such as where you are travelling, what your travel expenses are and what might happen to you when you get there.  The risk of incurring large medical expenses is greater in countries with higher active COVID-19 case-counts, more active variants and/or higher costs for medical services.

Examples:

• A 10-day hospitalization in the Intensive Care Unit on a ventilator in Miami, Florida could easily run up a bill exceeding USD$ 500,000. COVID-19 patients in severe respiratory failure may need ECMO (Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation) with costs that could easily exceed $1,000,000.
• The cost to get you back to Canada following a COVID-19 emergency could be as low as a few hundred dollars for a one-way return flight (if you have no symptoms and can provide the airline with a negative COVID test) or it could be tens of thousands of dollars for a more expensive return with medical assistance or on an air ambulance. If you need a hospital bed upon your return, there could be delays finding a bed due to the strain COVID-19 has placed on our healthcare system.

KNOW YOUR POLICY – Contact your provider for more details.

Check the coverage limit in your COVID-19 policy.  How much coverage is provided? Is there one limit for claims relating to COVID-19 and another limit for all other benefits that do not relate to COVID-19?  Does your special policy ONLY cover COVID-19? Does your coverage amount increase or change if you are fully vaccinated? Make sure you are adequately insured, not just for COVID-19, but also for other non-COVID events that may lead to a claim.

KNOW YOUR POLICY – Contact your provider for more details on your policy and how much it covers.