Ontario to require proof of vaccination for non-essential businesses

On September 1, 2021, the Government of Ontario released the details of its vaccine certification program which will take effect on September 22, 2021.

As of September 22, 2021, Ontarians will need to be fully vaccinated (i.e. 14 days will have to have passed after receiving their second COVID-19 vaccination) and will need to provide proof of their vaccination along with photo ID to access certain non-essential businesses and facilities. The current list of businesses and facilities that will require proof of vaccination includes:

• Restaurants and bars (excluding outdoor patios, as well as delivery and takeout);‎
• Nightclubs (including outdoor areas of the establishment);‎
• Meeting and event spaces, such as banquet halls and conference/convention ‎centres;‎
• Facilities used for sports and fitness activities and personal fitness training, such as ‎gyms, fitness and recreational facilities with the exception of youth recreational ‎sport;‎
• Sporting events;‎
• Casinos, bingo halls and gaming establishments;‎
• Concerts, music festivals, theatres and cinemas;‎
• Strip clubs, bathhouses and sex clubs;‎ and
• Racing venues (e.g., horse racing).‎

Notably, these mandatory requirements will not apply to retail locations, outdoor settings (with the exception of outdoor nightclubs), or to settings where people receive essential services. Certain individuals are also exempt from having to show proof of vaccination, including children who are ineligible to be vaccinated and employees who work in any of the approved settings.

Following in the footsteps of provinces like Quebec and British Columbia, Ontario’s vaccine certification program will rely on a smartphone-based vaccine certificate and verification app that’s still under development. Specifically, Ontario will introduce an enhanced digital vaccine receipt that features a QR code that can be verified by an app to be used by businesses and organizations. Until the launch of the app, patrons will be expected to rely on a printed or PDF receipt of their vaccination status. The Ontario Government has not yet clarified which vaccines qualify for certification.

Individuals who cannot receive the vaccine due to medical exemptions will be ‎permitted entry with a doctor’s note until recognized medical exemptions can be reflected in the pending QR code. The Ontario Government remains silent on how it plans to address other possible grounds for human rights protection as part of its vaccine certification program. It is unclear, for example, how a religious based exemption may be adequately integrated in the digital system, if at all. 

The details about Ontario’s pending smartphone app have also yet to be released and questions about the collection, use, retention and disclosure of users’ personal information on the app remain to be answered.

For further information about the impact of COVID-19 on the Canadian workplace, please contact any of the members of the DLA Piper Canadian Employment and Labour Law Service Group listed here.

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