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US welcomes back vaccinated Canadian visitors

As of Monday, Canadians and other non-U.S. citizens who are are vaccinated can cross into the U.S. for the first time since March 2020.

BUFFALO, N.Y. — After one year and eight months, land border bridges such as the Peace Bridge and the Rainbow Bridge are officially back open to non-essential travelers from Canada. 

As of Monday, Canadians and other non-U.S. citizens who are are vaccinated can come into the U.S. for the first time since March 2020, but with that comes some guidelines and restrictions.

While Canadians and citizens of another countries can easily cross into the U.S. if they can prove their vaccination status, it will be a little tricker to get back over the border to go home. That's because the rule requiring a negative COVID test to get into Canada is still in place. The results have to be within 72 hours of crossing the border. 

The tests can be costly, sometimes hundreds of dollars, so officials like Congressman Brian Higgins aren't expecting a surge of day travelers until the requirement is dropped. 

"We are concurrently working with our Canadian counterparts to get them to remove altogether the testing requirement upon re-entry into Canada," Higgins told 2 On Your Side. "As I said, that will discourage people in Canada from making that cross border trip if you have to bear the cost, inconvenience and unpleasant experience of getting tested."

We're expecting to hear more from Higgins and other local leaders on the testing issue Monday around 9:30 a.m.

In the meantime, Western New York Rapid Testing has now opened a new location at the Peace Bridge to serve Canadians re-entering the country after visiting the U.S. It will be open seven days a week and you can get your results in 30 minutes, for a price tag of $225. Next-day PCR results cost $160. 

The site is located at 211 Porter Avenue across from the Burger King, and is open form 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Sunday.

For more information, click here.

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