Exception: An immediate family member of a Canadian citizen or permanent resident who is staying in Canada for at least 15 days is exempt and can travel to Canada for any purpose.

How to unite with immediate family members who are Canadian citizens or permanent residents

To board your flight to Canada, you must

'follow all airline requirements and pass a health check conducted by airline officials to confirm that you don’t have symptoms of COVID-19, including a fever, a cough and difficulty breathing
-Anyone showing symptoms will not be allowed to board a flight to Canada.
-tell the airline that you’re exempt from the travel restrictions *show that you’re eligible to travel at this time.
-make sure you have a valid travel document (visitor visa or eTA) and a passport that is valid to come to Canada

"You DO NOT need a written authorization from IRCC confirming that you are exempt from the travel restrictions."

Documents to use as proof that you’re an immediate family member

You must have 2 types of documents:

-one that shows your immediate family member’s status as a Canadian citizen or permanent resident
-one that shows your relationship to that family member

Documents that show your immediate family member’s Canadian citizenship or permanent resident status include

-a Canadian passportproof of Canadian citizenship, such as a citizenship certificate, citizenship card, or provincial or territorial birth certificate
-a Canadian permanent resident card
-a Canadian permanent resident travel document

Documents that show your relationship to that family member include

-a marriage certificate or proof of common-law status (documents showing a shared address)
-a birth certificate
-Confirmation of Permanent Residence (COPR) for the family class (the COPR category under Application Details will be FC) or under the One-Year Window of Opportunity Program (coded OYW under Special Program)
-other documents that show an immediate family connection (for example, correspondence from us showing a spousal sponsorship application in progress or documents that show a shared home address)

Note: Paper and electronic copies of the documents above are accepted. Please note that the documents above are examples only. An officer may request or accept other documents as needed.

How to unite with immediate family members of people who are in Canada temporarily

To travel to Canada from the USt o reunite with an immediate family member who is in Canada TEMPORARILY, you must provide evidence that your travel is essentialFootnote1 (non-discretionary).

To board your flight to Canada from a country other than the US, you must have written authorization from IRCC to fly to Canada.

To request an authorization

Email IRCC at IRCC.COVID-TravelExemptions-Exemptionsdevoyage-COVID.IRCC@cic.gc.ca. We’ll contact you within 48 hours of getting your email and tell you what to do next.

When you contact us, you must provide your

full name
date of birth
unique client identifier (UCI)
passport number
detailed reason for travel
proof of relationship with an immediate family member in Canada
proof of immigration status of your immediate family member in Canada (copy of their study permit or work permit)
proof of temporary resident visa or eTA

If you don’t have written authorization, you won’t be allowed to board your flight to Canada, even if you have a valid visitor visa or eTA.