As expected, Canadian immigration authorities have now extended the discretionary travel ban from locations other than the United States to August 31, 2020. This follows the recent extension of the discretionary travel ban from the United States to August 21, 2020.
Note that the ban relates to ‘discretionary’ or ‘optional’ travel, such as recreation and tourism. There are, however, exceptions for some travel.
Exceptions that allow travel to Canada at this time include travel for matters of ‘national interest’, certain family visits of greater than 14 days, and travel by accredited officials.
Most notably, travel for work is permitted in various circumstances. For visa-exempt foreign nationals entering Canada from the United States (not only U.S. citizens), work permits can still be sought essentially as they were pre-COVID. (That being said, information should be provided to stress the importance of the work in Canada). For those seeking work permits from any country other than the United States, an application must be online, and only those relating to work in ‘essential services’ will be processed, based on procedures in place. Essential services are defined to include work in sectors including health, food, transportation, utilities, manufacturing and others.
Note further that the ability to travel to Canada is separate from the requirements for those entering in terms of quarantine and other COVID-related precautions. The quarantine requirements apply to everyone entering (including Canadian citizens), except those in essential services.
The information in this article is for general purposes only, and not intended as legal advice for any particular situation.