New York Quarantine Order Extended to Travelers from Canada

Last week, due to a sustained spike in COVID-19 cases in the US and elsewhere, the State of New York expanded executive order no. 205 with executive order no. 205.1 regarding who must quarantine upon arrival in New York.

The original executive order (no. 205) imposed a quarantine requirement on certain travelers entering New York from states within the US that were considered, at that time, to have significant COVID-19 positivity rates. Since that time, New York has updated the list of problematic states on a weekly basis.

As of October 6, 2020, the current list of states for which the New York quarantine requirement applies is as follows:

States are included on this list based upon a seven (7) day rolling average of positive tests in excess of 10%, or number of positive cases exceeding 10 per 100,000 residents. The requirements of the travel advisory do not apply to any individual passing through designated states for a limited duration (i.e., less than 24 hours) through the course of travel.

The new executive order (no. 205.1) expands the quarantine requirement not only to those states on New York’s list of problematic states, but also to travelers entering the US from any country with a CDC Level 2 or Level 3 health notice, including Canada.

Under the current orders, any traveler traveling from or who has been in a listed state or a country with a CDC Level 2 or 3 health notice in the last fourteen (14) days, including Canada, must quarantine for fourteen (14) days. Any violation of a quarantine or isolation order issued to an individual pursuant to the Commissioner of the Department of Health’s travel advisory by a local department of health or state department of health may be enforced pursuant to article 21 of the public health law, and non-compliance may additionally be deemed a violation pursuant to section 12 of the public health law subject to a civil penalty of up to $10,000.00 USD.

The immigration legal team at Moodys Tax continues to stay on the pulse of changes in immigration law and policy. Stay tuned for the latest.