Since the beginning of the pandemic (COVID-19), the Government of Canada has established several travel restrictions that directly impacted foreigners who planned to come to the country.
In order to assist international students outside of Canada, the government announced yesterday, October 20th, the list of Designated Learning Institutions (DLIs) with COVID-19 readiness plans approved by their province or territory that are now able to reopen to international students who are currently outside the country.
To be able to enter Canada, international students must meet two requirements:
1. They must have a valid study permit or a letter of introduction that shows they were approved for a study permit;
2. They must be attending a designated learning institution (DLI) with a COVID-19 readiness plan approved.
Travelling to Canada won’t be considered essential (non-discretionary) if:
1. The student’s program has been cancelled or suspended;
2. The student is entering Canada for any other reason than to study.
If you are an international student and your DLI isn’t included in the list, you cannot travel to Canada to study at this time. If you try to travel to Canada when your DLI isn’t included, you may not be allowed to board your flight or you may be turned away at the port of entry.
Family members who will be coming with you to Canada cannot travel to Canada before you do.
How COVID-19 Readiness DLIs plan works:
To be able to reopen to international students who are currently outside of Canada, DLIs must have a COVID-19 readiness plans approved by their province or territory that:
- Protects the health and safety of all students and the surrounding community;
- Describes how they will manage the mandatory 14-day quarantine period for international students, including arrangements for transportation to the students’ quarantine location;
- Provides information and support to international students about:
- how they can get the items they need for their quarantine, like food and medications
- health insurance
- remaining healthy while in Canada
The government will update the list as more DLIs are approved by their province or territory to reopen to international students who are currently outside Canada. If your DLI isn’t on the list yet, check back regularly to see if it’s been added or contact your school directly.
Any DLI that no longer meets its provincial or territorial public health requirements will be removed.
If you have an application in process and have questions regarding your documents or are still looking for more information related to visas and immigration, book an appointment today with our team of professionals.