New Year 2021

Happy New Year! IRCC has already made several important announcements that you should know about in this brand-new year. Here are the details:

Mandatory Covid19 Testing for Air Travellers

Starting January 7, all travellers 5 years or older, irrespective of status, who wish to fly to Canada from another country, will be required to present evidence of a negative Covid19 test to the airline before boarding.  The test must be conducted within the 72 hours prior to the scheduled flight and must be either a PCR or LAMP test.  At the outset, there are some time-limited flexibilities for travellers departing from some countries such as Haiti, Caribbean, and South America.

Restoration of Status

The public policy to allow individuals who have lost their temporary residence status after January 30, 2020 to restore their status has been extended to August 31, 2021.  Instead of the normal 90-day restoration period, an individual who had valid temporary resident status on or after January 30, 2020 but whose status expired on or before May 31, 2021, and have remained in Canada since, will have until August 31, 2021 to submit their restoration application.

ITAs started for Parents/Grandparents Sponsorship Program

IRCC has started sending out Invitations to Apply (ITA) for those who have been selected for the 2020 Parents/Grandparents Sponsorship Program. If you receive an ITA, you have 60 days to submit a complete application.

For those who have not been lucky enough to receive an ITA, please note that the Minister has announced that the quota for 2021 will be 30,000 which is 3 times the 2020 quota.