Last Updated on February 10, 2023
When the Government of Canada introduced travel restrictions in March 2020, it allowed travelling to Canada only to those COPR holders who were approved for immigration and travel to Canada before March 18, 2020.
What this means is that all those who received their COPRs (Confirmation of Permanent Residence) after March 18, 2020, are stuck outside Canada, unable to enter the country. By this time, for many COPRs have already expired and they require re-authorization to enter Canada,
Immigration, Refugees & Citizenship Canada (IRCC), Canada’s immigration ministry, strives to stay in touch with these individuals, and they were encouraged to inform IRCC about expirations of their COPRs via webform submission.
Starting September 2020, IRCC started to issue authorization letters allowing successful applicants and their families to travel to Canada. However, many still haven’t received their authorization letter. IRCC is saying that they issue these letters based on earliest expired COPRs.
Consider a different situation. For example, the principal applicant travelled to Canada but their family members stayed behind for various personal reasons hoping to join the principal applicant later. When the travel restrictions were first introduced, most people were not allowed to travel to Canada.
Eventually, the government allowed temporary residents to enter Canada if they have an immediate family member in Canada. Ironically, this exemption does not apply to permanent residents. Permanent resident visa holders are not allowed to travel to Canada to join their immediate family members.
While IRCC is working to resolve those issues, it is evident that hopeful return to pre-COVID-19 times is contingent on the success of mass vaccination program.
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