OTTAWA -- New rules at the Canada-U.S. border are now in effect, but it's not just sun-seekers who are affected.

As of Monday, travellers by land are required to show the results of their COVID-19 test. Negative tests need to have been taken within three days of the scheduled arrival at the border. Those permitted to enter the country can also present a positive COVID-19 test, as long as it was taken 14 to 90 days prior to arriving at the border.

All visitors or returning residents still have to quarantine for 14 days after crossing into the country.

But while snowbirds and vacationers are some of the people impacted by the changes, other travellers are finding themselves dealing with the new rules.

Jamie Lelievre-Pettipiece had to make an emergency trip to the States this weekend, before the changes came into effect.

“On Saturday morning, my father suffered a stroke, which led to a massive brain bleed, and he was put on life support,” said Lelievre-Pettipiece. “I was told he would be gone in a matter of hours.”

She drove straight from Ottawa to Michigan, a 12-hour trip.

“We got in at 9:20 last night and made it in time for them to take him off life support,” Lelievre-Pettipiece said.

Her trip home is now more complicated because she needs to provide a negative COVID-19 test at the border. She found a clinic that took her test early Monday morning for $119, and is waiting for the results. 

“They said originally it was taking up to a week. Lately, it’s been two to three days, but they can’t guarantee anything. This is the last thing I wanted to do the morning after my father passed,” she said.

The new testing rules don’t apply to essential workers such as medical staff or truck drivers like Glenn Goodbody, who crosses into the U.S. an average of five times a week. 

“At the border, everybody is taking all the precautions they need to; we get asked a few extra questions,” he said.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says some Canadians can apply for a special exception to the new rules and that border officials will assess each person on a case-by-case basis. 

--With files from CTVNews.ca's Alexandra Mae Jones.