The COVID entry restrictions at the Canadian border will be expiring on September 30.

Since last year, travelers were not only required to provide proof of vaccination – they were also required to download the ArriveCAN app.

Some say this has caused inconvenient delays at the border. It has also contributed to a significant decline in tourism.

One tourist says he drove all the way from Michigan to visit Niagara Falls, Canada. He was turned away at the border because he hadn’t submitted information on the app in time.

“I think they should just get rid of [the app]. It’s been too many years of the pandemic and people being scared of COVID – I think it’s going to phase its way out,” he says.

Others are concerned about the inevitable increase in border traffic. Especially those who rely on the NEXUS line to efficiently commute back and forth for work-related purposes.

NEXUS cardholders are required to schedule a re-enrollment interview to prevent their card from expiring. However, appointments for these interviews are backed up several months.

As of June 2022, there were still hundreds of thousands of Canadians waiting for an interview.

Canadian resident Melissa VanOsch says that during her morning commute to her job as a professor at Buffalo State College, the regular lanes at the border are backed up. The NEXUS lane is practically empty.

“I think it’s great for the economy, which has suffered, but I hope customs is prepared for the influx because I anticipate it getting worse,” says VanOsch. “There’s so many people backlogged for NEXUS, so they are clogging regular lines.”