Canada allowed certain foreign nationals to travel to Canada. These are individuals who have already committed to working, studying, or immigrating to Canada and include:

• seasonal agricultural workers
• fish/seafood workers
• caregivers
• all other temporary foreign workers in key industries
• international students who held a valid study permit, when the travel restrictions took effect on March 18, 2020
• international students who had been approved for a study permit, when the travel restrictions took effect on March 18, 2020
• permanent resident applicants who had been approved for permanent residence before the travel restrictions were announced on March 16, 2020, but who had not yet traveled to Canada
• foreign nationals traveling at the invitation of the Canadian government for a purpose related to the containment of COVID-19
• close family members of Canadian citizens
• close family members of Canadian permanent residents
• a person who is authorized, in writing, by a consular officer of the Government of Canada to enter Canada for the purpose of reuniting immediate family members
• a person registered as an Indian under the Indian Act
• accredited diplomats and family members (including NATO, those under the United Nations Headquarters Agreement, other organizations)
• air crews
• any foreign national, or group of foreign nationals, whose entry would be in the national interest, as determined by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, the Minister of Public Safety
• members of the Canadian military, visiting forces, and their family members
• transiting passengers

All individuals traveling to Canada from abroad must isolate for 14 days upon their arrival. This is in addition to health screening protocols. IRCC will announce when the exemptions are in place.

Temporary foreign workers, some international students and approved permanent residents who haven’t yet landed can travel to Canada starting March 29, 2020. You need to pass a health check conducted by airlines before you’re allowed to board your flight. Anyone who shows symptoms of COVID-19 will not be allowed to enter Canada by air.  When you arrive in Canada CBSA assesses your health before you leave the port of entry. You must isolate for 14 days even if you have no symptoms. This is mandatory for all, except people who provide essential services and truck drivers who regularly cross the border to maintain the flow of goods are exempt from the isolation requirements.

• The required 2-week recruitment period will be waived for the next six (6) months for a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) process for agriculture and food processing employers.

• The maximum allowable employment duration for workers in the low-wage stream of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program will be increased from one (1) to (2) years.

All applications currently in progress at IRCC offices abroad, at case processing centres in Canada and within the Domestic Network may experience delays but will continue to be processed. They will not be refused for non-compliance. Expedited processing of applications remains at the discretion of the managers in IRCC office abroad or processing office in Canada.

Processing offices may request any additional documents to continue processing citizenship and immigration applications, including police certificates, biometrics, passports, medical examinations and any documents that must be issued by Chinese, Iranian or South Korean authorities, specifically:

• 90 days will be given to an applicant to respond and provide additional documentation required to make a decision.
• Additional 90 days for the applicant to respond will be allowed if the applicant was unable to comply within the deadline in the request that has been previously sent.
• Despite the 30-day timeline identified in the biometric instruction letter (BIL), officers will allow 90 days for the applicant to provide their biometrics.

IRCC continues accepting and processing applications submitted online. It is experiencing difficulties receiving and processing applications submitted by mail or in person at a VAC. Moreover, to prevent the spread of COVID-19, some VACs are closed as of the date of this blog post until further notice. The following Visa Application Centers are temporarily closed:

• Algeria VAC in Algiers
• Kazakhstan VAC in Almaty
• Jordan VAC in Amman
• Paraguay VAC in Asuncion
• Lebanon VAC in Beirut
• Serbia VAC in Belgrade
• Germany VAC in Berlin
• Germany VACs in Düsseldorf
• Romania VAC in Bucharest
• Venezuela VAC in Caracas
• Philippines VACs in Cebu
• Iraq VAC in Erbil
• Guatemala VAC in Guatemala City
• Malaysia VAC in Kuala Lumpur
• Kuwait VAC in Kuwait City
• Peru VAC in Lima
• Ukraine VAC in Lviv
• France VAC in Lyon
• France VAC in Paris
• Spain VAC in Madrid
• Philippines VACs in Manila
• Uruguay VAC in Montevideo
• Kazakhstan VAC in Nur-Sultan
• Panama VAC in Panama City
• Kosovo VAC in Pristina
• Ecuador VAC in Quito
• Italy VAC in Rome
• Costa Rica VAC in San Jose
• El Salvador VAC in San Salvador
• Dominican Republic VAC in Santo Domingo
• Macedonia VAC in Skopje
• Honduras VAC in Tegucigalpa
• Israel VAC in Tel Aviv
• Austria VAC in Vienna
• China VAC in Wuhan
• Cameroon VAC in Yaoundé
• Armenia VAC in Yerevan

The following VACs in China provide limited biometric services until further notice:

• Chengdu
• Chongqing
• Guangzhou
• Hangzhou
• Jinan
• Kunming
• Nanjing
• Shanghai
• Shenyang

Some IRCC offices are currently operating with essential staff only. Biometric collection services at Service Canada locations have been suspended until further notice.

If you missed an appointment because you had to stay outside of Canada, your appointment could be rescheduled upon return to Canada. This covers knowledge tests, retests, interviews, hearings, or citizenship oath ceremonies. It will be rescheduled within a reasonable timeframe, and you will get a new notice to appear that will be treated as your first notice.

Additional 30 days will be allowed to send documents to IRCC once applicants have notified the local office that they have returned from China, Iran, or South Korea.

Additional 45 days will be provided to the applicants upon their return to Canada to comply with the Request for Medical Opinion.

Extra days spent in China, Iran, or South Korea due to COVID-19 shall not count as days in Canada. Physical presence requirement has still to be met as per the normal procedure.

Temporary residence applicants in China, Iran, South Korea who have an urgent trip to Canada can submit an online application and flag it for urgent processing. Such requests are assessed on a case-by-case basis at the discretion of the processing officer. Due to VAC and panel physicians closures, and travel bans, applicants may be unable to provide their biometrics, attend interviews, do medical examinations, or submit their original travel document for visa issuance through the VAC. Program managers may waive biometrics overseas for urgent or humanitarian and compassionate (H&C) reasons when deemed necessary.

Foreign nationals who are currently in Canada and whose temporary resident status may soon expire should apply for an extension of status. It will allow maintaining temporary resident status in Canada. Applications must be made online. All requirements must be met, including the fees must be paid, as there is no fee waiver for any temporary residence applications or extensions.

Foreign nationals who have their application for status extension in progress, do not require urgent or expedited processing and may remain in Canada having an implied status.

Generally, foreign nationals can apply for restoration of their status within 90 days from its expiration. After the assessment by processing officer, a visitor record, or appropriate study or work permit can be issued outlining the restoration conditions.

For those foreign nationals who missed a 90-day deadline for applying for restoration, or is otherwise not eligible for restoration, can be referred to an admissibility hearing, issued a departure order, or allowed to remain in Canada.

Intake and processing according to normal procedures of new permanent residence applications will continue.

Applicants should provide an explanation letter if they can not provide supporting documentation in time because of the service disruptions as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19). Incomplete files due to unavailable documents will be retained and reviewed in 90 days. If the application is still incomplete in 60 days because of the service disruptions, officers should request the missing documents with an additional 90-day deadline.

Incomplete applications for permanent residence with no explanations, or for unrelated to COVID-19 reasons may be rejected.

If the principal applicant is in Canada and has overseas dependants in China, Iran, or South Korea, delays may occur. The principal applicant can not be granted permanent residence until their overseas dependants can travel.

Permanent residents who require a Permanent Resident Travel Document (PRTD) to return to Canada from China, Iran, or South Korea can request urgent travel in exceptional cases.

Foreign nationals whose applications for permanent residence were approved but who are unable to travel to Canada within the validity of Confirmation of Permanent Residence (COPR) and Permanent Resident Visa (PRV) must inform IRCC by submitting a web form.

Applicants who will be able to travel before the expiration of their COPR and PRV can still use it to land in Canada.

For those with expired CORP and PRV, when you are able to travel again, inform IRCC via the web form so that your application gets re-opened and re-approved. Still, valid immigration medical examinations, criminal and security checks, and passports are required for the applicant and family members, when applicable.

Officers should review cases with expired COPR and PRV within 90 days. If the 60-day waiting period elapses and the applicant has not informed IRCC of their ability to travel again, a note will be made, and the application will be brought forward for review for an additional 60 days.

Valid Immigration Medical Examination (IME) results are required for all permanent residence applicants. Should the IMEs be expired by the time the applicant and their family are ready to travel, new IMEs or a reassessment will be required for the applicants and their family members with expired IMEs, because of their inability to travel to Canada as a result of the novel coronavirus. Applicants must inform they are ready to travel to get a request for new IME.