Europe Union Removes Canadians From Preferred Travel List as COVID Spikes in Canada

Europe Union Removes Canadians From Preferred Travel List as COVID Spikes in Canada

October 21, 2020 ctn_admin

Canadians who had planned a trip to Europe this fall may have to rethink their plans.

Sources say the European Union has taken Canada of its preferred list or “white list” of countries that are considered safe.

The decision doesn’t ban travel immediately, nor is it necessarily strictly enforced in every EU country. But it sows confusion for travellers and likely will make it harder for Canadians to visit in the short term.

A meeting of ambassadors from the 27 EU nations on Wednesday chose to remove three countries from the white list (Canada, Tunisia and Georgia) because of sharp increases in COVID-19 infections. Singapore was added to the white list for the EU.

Any slowdown in travel from Canada to Europe would, of course, negatively impact airlines, tour operators, hotel owners and others in the travel and tourism business in both countries.