What you need to know about the Quarantine Act as isolation becomes mandatory for returning travellers

Canada is making unprecedented use of the federal Quarantine Act in a bid to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. The order, which went into effect early Wednesday, hours before it was announced, means all travellers returning to Canada are now legally required to go into self-isolation for 14 days rather than simply urged. Here’s a closer look at the legislation:

Has Canada always had a Quarantine Act?

According to the federal government, a piece of legislation bearing the same name went into effect shortly after confederation in 1872, but was left largely unchanged for more than a century. After the deadly SARS outbreak of 2003, however, the government acted on a recommendation to beef up the legislation.

The act as we know it received royal ascent in 2005. What’s allowed under act?

The legislation gives the federal health minister sweeping powers to stop the spread of communicable diseases either in or out of Canada. Those measures include everything from routine screenings conducted by quarantine officers at airports to the sort of mandatory isolation orders issued on Wednesday.

“The Quarantine Act is always active,” says Steven Hoffman, director of the Global Strategy Lab and a global health law professor at York University. “It’s just not always used in a very public way.”

The Act was invoked earlier this year when travellers returning to Canada from Wuhan, China and other global hotspots for the coronavirus were detained for two weeks at an eastern-Ontario military base. But Hoffman says the latest orders, issued by Health Minister Patty Hajdu, take the government into uncharted territory. How will the new orders be enforced?

That’s the big question for Hoffman, who says the new edict will need to be implemented consistently across the country in order to ensure it does not run afoul of the Constitution. Hoffman says that while quarantine officers at the border have enforcement powers, local public health and law enforcement officials may be enlisted as the order takes effect. Health Canada did not immediately respond to request for comment, but

Hajdu has said details about enforcement will be released before the order kicks in.

What happens if someone violates the Act?

Hoffman says the legislation contains a wide range of penalties for those flouting the law. Hajdu’s office issued further clarification late Wednesday: maximum penalties include fines up to $750,000 and six months in jail.

Is the government within its rights to take this step? Hoffman anticipates the new use of the Act will be challenged in court eventually, but says Ottawa is likely on solid legal ground.

He said the Act requires Hajdu to follow a “reasonableness requirement” and be able to demonstrate that the affected travellers pose a genuine risk to the public.