Background
As noted in a prior issue of ImmPulse™, Canada was at some point in the future to broaden the list of people who would require biometrics to enter Canada. Until now, the requirement has only been placed on nationals of a few countries (which can be determined at http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/visit/biometrics.asp; examples include Algeria, Bangaldesh, and Iraq, to name just a few).
What’s Changed
Effective July 31, 2018, biometrics will now be required for various classes of people seeking to enter or travel to Canada, subject to a few exceptions to be set out below. The following categories of people will need biometrics:
- Those seeking visitor visas (i.e. at a visa post)
- Those seeking work or study permits (whether at a visa post or port of entry)
- Those seeking permanent residence, and
- Those seeking refugee or asylum status.
There are, however, a number of exemptions from the need for biometrics.
- Canadian citizens, citizenship applicants (including passport applicants), or existing permanent residents
- children under the age of 14
- applicants over the age of 79 (there is no upper age exemption for asylum claimants)
- visa-exempt nationals coming to Canada as tourists who hold a valid Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA)
- heads of state and heads of government
- cabinet ministers and accredited diplomats of other countries and the United Nations, coming to Canada on official business
- S. visa holders transiting through Canada
- refugee claimants or protected persons who have already provided biometrics and are applying for a study or work permit
- temporary resident applicants who have already provided biometrics in support of a permanent resident application that is still in progress
In addition, for now, those applying for any kind of immigration status/document from within Canada are currently exempted, but it is expected that eventually, various forms of inland applications will also give rise to the need for biometrics.
Provision of biometric information is required only once every 10 years, so subsequent types of applications, during a ten year period since the initial biometrics were granted, will not garner the need for provision of further biometrics.
What You Should Do
Any applicant, employer, or other party who may be involved in the immigration process should be aware of the foregoing, and should take action to ensure compliance. There are procedures to be followed to seek biometrics (whether at a visa post or port of entry), and applicants will need to ensure that those procedures are followed.
The information in this article is for general purposes only, and not intended as legal advice for any particular situation.