EXEO Attorneys | Immigration U.S. & Canada as of October 22, 2021

This month’s newsletter provides an overview of recent changes in Canadian and American immigration including all measures directly related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Here are the most recent news since the beginning of the pandemic and travel restrictions as of October 22, 2021

The U.S. land border will be open to fully vaccinated Canadian travellers starting on November 8

Vaccinated Canadians will be able to travel to the U.S. by land or ferry starting on November 8, 2021 for non-essential purposes (tourism, family travel, etc.). This measure also applies to the Mexican land border.

As of January 2022, all people traveling to the United States by land or ferry will have to be fully vaccinated. More information should follow in the coming weeks. As a reminder, since the beginning of the pandemic, Canadians were allowed to travel by air to the United States regardless of their vaccination status.

Federal Vaccination Passport for Canadian Travellers as of October 30

All international and interprovincial travellers aged 12 years and older will be required to carry an immunization passport for travel on all federally regulated transportation in Canada as of October 30, 2021.

The standardized vaccination passport will be recognized and accepted for international travel. Download yours here.

Please note that a one-month grace period will be allowed until November 30 2021. More information should follow in the coming weeks.

Vaccination requirement for all travellers leaving Canada as of November 30

All travellers wishing to leave Canada by air will be required to be adequately vaccinated as of November 30, 2021. These people will no longer be able to leave Canada without having a complete vaccination schedule.

Vaccination obligation does not apply to trips considered “essential”

• The vaccine requirement does not apply to travel deemed “essential.”
• U.S. citizens and permanent residents ;
• Individuals traveling for medical purposes ;
• Students
• Foreign workers ;
• Workers traveling for public health purposes;
• Persons engaged in lawful cross-border trade (truck drivers);
• Military and government personnel.

Occupational wage increases by interval for Quebec LMIA applications – as of January 2022

The Ministry of Immigration, Frenchisation and Integration Quebec has updated its Guide on “Salaries by occupation presented by quartile intervals in Quebec”.

This guide will now be the reference tool as of January 1, 2022 to verify whether the salary offered to a temporary foreign worker in the context of an application for a labour market impact study (LMI) is in line with the median in effect in Quebec, depending on the occupation and the years of experience required for the position. The previous Guide was dated 2020.

Please note that some sectors, such as technology, have seen their median salary increase significantly due to the current job shortage and competitive market. Therefore, employers in Quebec who will have to go through the LMIA process will have to ensure that they meet the new salary reference thresholds. Note that this is applicable even for a renewal of employment of a temporary foreign worker, if the LMIA process is required.

Compliments of EXEO Attorneys – a member of the EACCNY.