Mr. Prime Minister

We, holders of visas and COPRs post-18 March 2020, would like to submit this petition to respectfully bring to your attention our distress due to the travel restrictions applied on us and also our increasing concerns with regard to the lack of visibility on when the IRCC will be lifting the travel restrictions to Canada for the holders of the Visas and COPRs post-18 March 2020.

The world is going through unprecedented times with severe effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on many aspects of life including travel conditions. The Immigration to Canada is a lifetime project for all of us. We have spent time and money in addition to commitment to settle in Canada and become part of the Canadian dream. We experienced loss of friends, neighbors, relatives, parents and also beloved ones. Despite the distress of these effects of the pandemic, we were prepared ourselves to travel and settle in Canada.  Most of us, upon receiving the visas and COPRs took necessary measures to travel in the short term as part of our plan to come and live in Canada. However, the specific travel restrictions preventing us to travel to Canada until further notice. These measures  had  devastating impact  on some of us and caused huge distress on all of us especially with the scenario of the expiration of the visa and COPRs and eventually going into new cycle that will lengthen the process and delaying our settlement in Canada  with all the implications on our lives. We believe that allowing the holders of visas and COPRs post-18 March 2020 is possible while applying the COVID-19 travel measures such as the PCR, quarantine like any current travelers to Canada. Below are the main arguments in favor of this relaxation:

·         While  COPRs holders prior-18 March, students and family members of Canadian citizens have had the possibility to make their landing into the Canadian territory before and after the 18 March 2020, COPRs holders post-18 March have been restricted from travel and left without any indication about future prospects,  when the same sanitary rules apply for the previously cited categories.

·         The devastating implications and distress caused by the travel restrictions on us especially for children and teenagers at age of understanding such situation.  The sentiment of rejection from their future  home is building day after day and it is difficult to explain the contrary to them when the status quo is maintained for such a long time. This has also impacted upon the capacity of parents in deciding about the future of their children in terms of enrollment at school and many other life commitments.

·         This situation is unfortunately building into a humanitarian crisis and into an unbearable psychological strain across the world. Many families are caught into a dilemma, as they are not being able to clearly plan their life in their home countries, because they have been mentally projecting to imminently start building a new life in Canada - which is a healthy behavior for a future immigrant - but paradoxically not being able to plan their departure as prospective immigrants to Canada.

·         With no visibility about prospective dates on lifting travel restrictions, a situation if it lasts, would cause IRCC extra bottlenecks and additional work as well. With the approach of the expiry dates on travel documents, IRCC may possibly have to deal again with persons that have been approved for immigration which would lead to duplicating the already finalized processes which would in turn add burden to an already lengthy administrative processes.  Prospective immigrants may have to face again bureaucratic challenges with all the implications that may arise from such process.

It is against all these reasons, that we believe that COPRs holders  post-18 March 2020 who have been in the process of preparing to immigrate to Canada for many years now - some of us for more than ten years - to a country that we strongly believe it is a country that respects human rights and human dignity, and it is in fact for these great values  among others, that we have sacrificed years of our lives and are now ready to leave everything precious behind us, in order to be part of this great nation and this land of immigration by excellence, that we humbly solicit the Canadian Government to reconsider the lifting of travel restrictions for COPRs holders  post-18 March 2020.

We, the COPRs holders post-18 March 2020 are fully aware of the current sanitary challenges. Far from being an exception of those categories who have been granted access to Canada, we will be fully compliant with all sanitary measures that are being enforced by the Canadian Government. In conclusion, we will be grateful if you could lift the current travel restrictions, so that we can take a new start that we have been planning for many years.

Please accept, Mr. Prime Minister, our highest regards.