Major changes to help prevent Canadian children from being falsely flagged on the no-fly list are officially coming into effect, giving families new options to avoid airport delays and the stress of potentially being denied boarding.
For years, a group of Canadians with young children whose names match those on the no-fly list have pushed the federal government for a solution to revamp passenger screening.
The government rolled out a test system earlier this year that gave those families the option of applying for a unique, designated Canadian Travel Number. It’s also taking over the responsibility for cross-checking passenger lists with the no-fly list from the airlines.
READ MORE: Families who endured airport delays over no fly list invited to test new system
The ability to file online applications for those new travel numbers is set to open in the next two weeks.
The regulations bringing those changes into force take effect as of Wednesday, a move the government says will reduce discrimination and better protect the privacy of Canadian travellers.
“We assured concerned parents we would work to ensure this never happened again,” said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in question period on Wednesday.
“We can all agree that 10-year-olds should not have to worry about being publicly singled out while trying to watch their favourite hockey team in action.”
More to come.