COVID-19: Canadian travel restrictions & other immigration updates.
As of March 18, 2020, on the recommendation of the Minister of Health, Her Excellency the Governor-General in Council has published the following annex, Minimizing the Risk of Exposure to COVID 19 Coronavirus Disease in Canada Order (Prohibition of Entry into Canada).
Travel Ban
Any foreign national, for better clarity, a person who is not a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident, is unable to enter Canada from a foreign country by aircraft. This order will impact students, workers and visitors to Canada.
Exemptions
For the purpose of the below, immediate family members means:
Spouse, common-law partner or dependent child
The travel ban listed above does not apply to:
A person can only have been in the United States or Canada in the 14 days prior to their arrival in Canada.
For better clarity, if you are in Canada and travelled to the United States for a week, upon your return to Canada, the previous 14 days will be examined. In this scenario, during the last 14 days, you would have spent seven days in the United States and seven days in Canada.
An immediate family member of a Canadian citizen or permeant resident. Immediate family (spouse, common-law partner or a dependent child).
A person who is exempt from a temporary resident visa and the immediate family members of that person.
A protected person
A person registered as an Indian
A person who is authorized, in writing, by a consular officer of the Government of Canada to enter Canada for the purpose of reunited immediate family members
Aircrew members
Persons invited by the Minister of Health to assist in the COVID-19 disease response
Persons who arrive by means of an aircraft operated by the Canadian Forces or Department of National Defence
Members of the Canadian Forces or visiting force and their immediate family members
A French citizen who resides in Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon and has only been in Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, the United States or Canada in the 14 days preceding their arrival to Canada
A person who, in the opinion of Chief Public Health Officer, does not pose a risk of significant harm to public health, will provide an essential service which in Canada, or their presence is in the national interest.
The order is in effect from noon EST on March 18, 2020, ending noon EST on June 30, 2020.
International Flights
All international passenger flights will be redirected to four airports:
Calgary International Airport
Vancouver International Airport
Toronto-Pearson International Airport
Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport
Returning to Canada
There will be additional measures implemented at airports, including:
strengthen health screening
increase presence to conduct further health screening and public outreach
increase signage throughout the arrivals area to encourage travellers to follow the latest public health guidance
prevent all travellers who have COVID-19 symptoms, regardless of their citizenship, from boarding international flights to Canada
airlines will conduct a basic health assessment of all air travellers based on guidance from the Public Health Agency of Canada
Self-isolation
All travellers entering Canada are being asked to self-isolate for 14 days upon entry. Contact with other people should be avoided for the full 14 days while monitoring themselves closely.
Support for Canadians Abroad
The Government of Canada has created the COVID-19 Emergency Loan Program for Canadians Aboard. This will provide an emergency loan to Canadians in need of immediate financial assistance to return home or to temporarily cover their life-sustaining needs while they work towards their return.
Global Affairs Canada is providing 24/7 consular support to Canadians abroad affected by COVID-19 through the Emergency Watch and Response Centre as well as through consular staff at its network of missions.
Other Updates
IRCC’s Client Support Centre’s telephone services line is unavailable until further notice
Biometric Collection Services at Service Canada locations have been suspended until further notice
Some IRCC offices are currently operating with essential staff only
If you are impacted by the above, we will continue to provide as much support as possible to immigrants and their families. As the issue continues to evolve, we’ll share more updates.
Until then, from all of us at NextGen,
Stay Informed. Stay safe.