New travel application process for people entering N.S. in effect Friday

A new travel application process for people trying to enter Nova Scotia comes into effect Friday at 8 a.m.

The application process is required for anyone entering the province. No one can enter until their application is reviewed and approved.

People can apply through the province's already-established Nova Scotia Safe Check-In form online, according to a news release from the Department of Health and Wellness.

"This application process means travellers will be certain before they leave that they are able to enter the province, as we limit who enters Nova Scotia to protect our citizens and health-care system from COVID-19," Premier Iain Rankin said in the release. "People who meet our criteria to enter Nova Scotia will have no problem getting through the approval process."

Anyone who had already completed the check-in form and received approval does not need to reapply, as long as they are travelling on or before May 19.

Starting May 20, only approvals through the new process will be accepted.

Only applications for permanent residents and people travelling for essential reasons will be considered.

Apply a week before travel

People should apply about a week before they intend to travel, and applications will be reviewed within three business days. Applications for child-custody arrangements and exempt travellers, such as military members, first responders and people accessing essential health care, will be approved automatically.

The province announced further border restrictions on May 7, barring any non-essential travel from outside the province, including residents from Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador who had previously been allowed to enter. The border also closed to anyone moving to Nova Scotia.

Those measures, which came into effect on May 10, left many people who had already bought homes in Nova Scotia, and were in the middle of moving, wondering what their options were.

Premier Iain Rankin subsequently announced compassionate exemptions will be made for exceptional circumstances. Instructions for applying for an exemption are posted on the province's website.

The application process does not affect the 14-day self-isolation requirement for people entering the province.

In the release, Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Robert Strang also said Public Health is encouraging people to get tested at the beginning and end of their self-isolation periods.

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