Travelers within Canada, all federal employees must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19

All federal employees and anyone wanting to travel by plane, train or sea vessel must be fully vaccinated by the end of the month.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the new federal policy during a news conference in Ottawa Wednesday morning.

There will be a one-month grace period where proof of a negative COVID-19 test will be accepted for travel but by November 30, all travelers in federally regulated air, rail and marine services will need to be fully vaccinated.

The government says testing exemptions will only be allowed in extremely limited emergency situations.

Air travel operators will be responsible for verifying proof of vaccination which can include paper copies or provincial vaccination passports.

The government says it will work with the cruise industry to put in place strict requirements ahead of the 2022 cruise season.

Federal employees have until October 29 to provide their vaccine status after which they could have limited access to their workplace or be placed on administrative leave without pay.

The policy applies to more than 267,000 workers.

It does not apply to employees of crown corporations or members of the Canadian Armed Forces, however, they are asked to enforce similar measures.