Regulations Amending the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations: SOR/2018-107

Canada Gazette, Part II, Volume 152, Number 12

Registration

May 25, 2018

IMMIGRATION AND REFUGEE PROTECTION ACT

P.C. 2018-598 May 24, 2018

Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, pursuant to subsections 5(1), 14(2)^footnotea, and 26(1) ^footnoteb of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act ^footnotec, makes the annexed Regulations Amending the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations.

Regulations Amending the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations

Amendment

1 Schedule 1.1 to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations^footnote1 is amended by adding the following in alphabetical order:

United Arab Emirates

Coming into Force

2 These Regulations come into force at 05:30:00 a.m. eastern daylight time on June 5, 2018, but if they are registered after that time, they come into force at 05:30:00 a.m. eastern daylight time on the day after the day on which they are registered.

REGULATORY IMPACT ANALYSIS STATEMENT

(This statement is not part of the Regulations.)

Issues

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has determined that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) meets the criteria to be exempted from the requirement that Emirati citizens obtain a temporary resident visa (TRV) before entering Canada. The exemption from a TRV cannot be granted to the UAE without amending the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (the Regulations).

Background

Under the Regulations, persons travelling to Canada on a temporary basis require a TRV, with the exception of those from countries and territories whose citizens have been granted an exemption. Travellers who are visa-exempt are required to apply for and obtain an electronic travel authorization (eTA) in order to travel to Canada by air (with the exception of citizens of the United States). A visa requirement is an additional layer of screening that can help to deter irregular migration, as TRV applicants must prove that they will abide by the conditions of temporary residence in Canada. However, an eTA is a more facilitative approach for travellers determined to be low risk.

IRCC worked with various partners, including the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), Public Safety Canada, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) and Global Affairs Canada, to evaluate the UAE against the visa exemption criteria in Canada’s visa policy framework. These criteria include socio-economic conditions, migration trends, travel document integrity, border management, safety and security, human rights, and bilateral and multilateral issues. During this review, Canada also collected information from its international partners, including the United States. The thorough and exhaustive review found that the UAE has exceptional border management and travel document integrity. Emirati citizens also, generally speaking, abide by the conditions of their stay, as they have had a very low immigration violation rate for many years. In addition, the UAE has been an important security partner for Canada. Therefore, IRCC has determined that the UAE meets the criteria for a visa exemption.

Following the visa lift on June 5, 2018, all Emirati citizens entering Canada for leisure or business will, like all other visa-exempt foreign nationals, require an eTA to fly to, or transit through, Canada by air. Emiratis wanting to work or study in Canada will need to apply for a work or study permit, as is the case for all foreign nationals.

Objectives

The objective of this regulatory amendment is to offer visa-free travel to citizens who have been assessed to be sufficiently low risk. An ancillary benefit is to strengthen Canada’s ties to the UAE as a whole. The lifting of the TRV requirement will lead to immediate economic benefits through the increase in the number of business travellers and visitors, build momentum to expand trade, investment and tourism, strengthen people-to-people ties, and provide lasting benefits for the UAE and Canada.

Description

The Regulations are amended to add the UAE to the list of countries and territories whose citizens are exempt from the TRV requirement for travel to Canada.

Regulatory and non-regulatory options considered

In order to add the UAE to the list of countries exempt from the TRV requirement, a regulatory change is necessary and is the only option.

“One-for-One” Rule

The “One-for-One” Rule does not apply to this regulatory amendment, as there is no change in administrative costs to business.

Small business lens

The small business lens does not apply, as this regulatory amendment applies to individuals and imposes no costs on small business.

Consultation

Consultations related to the UAE visa lift were conducted with a number of other federal departments and agencies, including the CBSA, Public Safety Canada, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, CSIS, Global Affairs Canada, and the Privy Council Office. International partners, including the United States, were also consulted.

Rationale

The Regulations facilitate the travel of legitimate visitors from the UAE to Canada, as they have been assessed to meet Canada’s criteria for a visa exemption. Lifting the requirement to obtain a TRV will result in some costs to the Government, including transition costs to implement the change. For example, there will be information technology costs to ensure eTA functionality, costs to publicly communicate the new requirements, as well as costs covering updates to Government bulletins, operational manuals, and forms. Furthermore, it should be acknowledged that, as with any visa lift, there is a risk that Canada could see additional asylum claims and inland enforcement implications. However, it is anticipated that the risk is relatively low, given that historically, Canada has not observed a great number of asylum or immigration violations from the UAE. These costs will be offset by the resulting economic benefits to Canada, as lifting the visa will facilitate additional travel by business and leisure visitors, as well as those visiting friends and family. These additional visitors will boost trade and investment, and benefit the Canadian tourism and air travel sectors.

Implementation, enforcement and service standards

This regulatory amendment comes into force on June 5, 2018, at 5:30 am, eastern standard time. As this amendment removes the TRV requirement, no compliance measures are required. However, the impact of this change will be monitored and evaluated with existing information sources and according to existing practices.

Contact

Julie Spattz
Deputy Director
Visa Policy
Admissibility Branch
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
180 Kent Street, 8th Floor
Ottawa, Ontario