Canada planning COVID-19 vaccine passport for international travel

FILE PHOTO: A person wearing a protective mask walks through terminal 1 at Toronto's Pearson Airport after mandatory coronavirus disease (COVID-19) testing took effect for international arrivals in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada February 15, 2021. REUTERS/Carlos Osorio

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada is working to create a digital vaccine passport that would allow citizens to travel abroad and it should be available in the next few months, government officials said on Wednesday.

Before the passport can be created Ottawa needs to agree on a common approach with the 10 provinces and three northern territories, which are responsible for inoculations against COVID-19.

It "is a key step forward in ensuring Canadians will have the documents they need once it is safe to travel again," Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino told reporters.

The European Union has a vaccine passport system that allows people to travel freely within the region. A number of other countries are working on vaccine passports for both domestic use and international travel.

Canada has one of the best inoculation records in the world. As of July 31, 81% people aged 12 and over had received one shot and 68% had been given two.

(Reporting by David Ljunggren; Editing by David Gregorio)