Canada loosens border for families

International students are also being granted more flexibility

OTTAWA — People desperate to bring extended family members to Canada as the world remains locked down due to COVID-19 are being given some hope by the federal government.

Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino announced Friday that more family members of Canadian citizens and permanent residents will now be eligible to enter the country.

“The pandemic is an ongoing threat and we need to continue to be cautious and restrictive about who can enter into Canada,” he said.

“We recognize, however, that these restrictions should not keep loved ones apart.”

Those now eligible for entry include adult children, siblings, grandparents and those who have been in a committed relationship for at least a year, which will have to be proven by anotarized declaration.

The process of how’ll they will be able to enter will be online soon and those who have the needed documentation can arrive beginning Oct. 8.

Mendicino said nobody should make travel plans until they’ve been authorized under the new program.

The federal government is also implementing a compassionate- entry program for those who don’t qualify as family but want to enter Canada for specific reasons, such as to see a dying loved one.

International students are also being granted more flexibility and starting Oct. 20 will be admitted if their places of learning have been identified by provincial governments as having suitable COVID-19 plans.

Canada first closed its borders to all but a short list of essential workers in the spring in a bid to slow the spread of COVID-19. After an outcry, the government opened the gates a crack to immediate family members of citizens and permanent residents, but many other family members had been left off the list of exemptions.