Regulations Amending the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations: SOR/2026-101

Canada Gazette, Part II, Volume 160, Number 12

Registration
SOR/2026-101 June 2, 2026

IMMIGRATION AND REFUGEE PROTECTION ACT

P.C. 2026-525 June 2, 2026

Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, makes the annexed Regulations Amending the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations under subsection 5(1) and sections 14footnote a and 26footnote b of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Actfootnote c.

Regulations Amending the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations

Amendments

1 (1) Subsection 7.1(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulationsfootnote 1 is replaced by the following:

Electronic travel authorization

7.1 (1) A foreign national referred to in paragraph 7(2)(a) who is exempt from the requirement to obtain a temporary resident visa and who is either seeking to enter Canada by air to remain on a temporary basis or seeking to enter Canada by vessel directly from St. Pierre and Miquelon to remain on a temporary basis is required to obtain an electronic travel authorization before entering Canada, unless they are exempt from that requirement under subsection (3).

(2) Subsection 7.1(3) of the Regulations is amended by striking out “and” at the end of paragraph (e) and by replacing paragraph (f) with the following:

Coming into Force

2 These Regulations come into force at 01:00 Eastern Daylight Time on June 5, 2026, but if they are registered after that time, they come into force at 01:00 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

Under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (the Regulations), all visitors to Canada are required to obtain a temporary resident visa (visa), except for foreign nationals of countries and territories who have been granted an exemption. Most visa-exempt foreign nationals are still required to obtain an electronic travel authorization (eTA) to travel to Canada by air. Subject to certain exceptions, an approved eTA is valid for five years, or until the holder’s passport expires, whichever occurs first. Certain individuals are exempt from the requirement to apply for an eTA to travel by air, including citizens and lawful permanent residents of the United States (U.S.) and French citizens who reside in and who are seeking to enter Canada directly from St. Pierre and Miquelon. Border services officers at the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) determine the admissibility of all foreign nationals at ports of entry. This includes verifying documents where applicable and denying entry to persons who are inadmissible.

There is currently no eTA requirement for travel to Canada by land or marine modes. Therefore, visa-exempt foreign nationals entering Canada via marine mode from St. Pierre and Miquelon are not required to obtain an authorization prior to arrival at the port of entry in Fortune, Newfoundland and Labrador. In 2025, the CBSA observed an increase in irregular migration by visa-exempt foreign nationals travelling via marine mode between St. Pierre and Miquelon and Fortune, which generates additional costs and poses safety and security risks to Canada. To secure Canada’s borders, amendments to the Regulations are required to introduce an eTA requirement for visa-exempt foreign nationals seeking to enter Canada by marine mode directly from St. Pierre and Miquelon.

Background

The eTA requirement was introduced in 2015 to systematically screen visa-exempt travellers entering Canada by air and identify threats abroad. Prior to its introduction, this screening occurred only once the traveller had already arrived on Canadian soil. When a foreign national applies for an eTA, the officers of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) may evaluate and refuse inadmissible or ineligible applications following existing procedures prescribed in the Regulations. Visa-exempt travellers entering Canada by land or sea arrived for the most part from the United States and so are subject to U.S. screening before seeking entry to Canada.

Most marine passenger travel between St. Pierre and Miquelon and Canada occurs on two ferries that travel to Fortune (Newfoundland and Labrador) and cruise ships that travel to different ports of entry in Atlantic Canada. There are also some private and commercial vessels that travel to Fortune that may occasionally carry visa-exempt foreign nationals.

In recent years a direct flight was introduced between France and St. Pierre and Miquelon. Prior to this, most travellers accessed St. Pierre and Miquelon by first transiting through Canada (and were therefore subject to Canadian screening). In 2025, the marine port of entry at Fortune observed a significant increase in irregular migration by several visa-exempt foreign nationalities travelling to Canada by vessel after flying to St. Pierre and Miquelon from France. Using this route evades eTA screening applicable in air mode, which may have resulted in refusal for inadmissibility or other grounds. Some individuals have exploited this route to make asylum claims, violate the conditions of their stay, or engage in criminal activity in Canada.

Objective

The objective of the Regulations Amending the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (the Amendments) is to secure Canada’s borders and address a source of irregular migration by implementing a screening requirement for visa-exempt foreign nationals travelling by vessel from St. Pierre and Miquelon to Canada. The requirement is targeted in nature to preserve access for genuine travellers.

Description

Introducing a limited eTA Requirement

Foreign nationals who are exempt from the requirement to obtain a visa will now be required to obtain a valid eTA before entering Canada from St. Pierre and Miquelon using a marine mode of travel unless otherwise exempt. This means that all visa-exempt foreign nationals who currently require an eTA to travel to Canada by air will now require an eTA to travel to Canada from St. Pierre and Miquelon by vessel.footnote 2 A foreign national that already has a valid eTA would not need to apply for a new one to travel by vessel from St. Pierre and Miquelon to Canada.

All existing exemptions to the eTA requirement for the air mode will be maintained in the context of this new marine mode requirement. Existing eTA exemptions include but are not limited to

Exemptions to the eTA Requirement

The Amendments will include exemptions to two marine movements:

Regulatory development

Consultation

The Amendments were developed in consultation with the CBSA, Public Safety Canada, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and Global Affairs Canada. The Government of Canada also consulted with the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, the Local Authority of St. Pierre and Miquelon and the Government of France.

Indigenous engagement, consultation and modern treaty obligations

An assessment of modern treaty implications was conducted.

The Amendments would not apply to or take effect in any modern treaty area. No modern treaty implications with respect to the Amendments were identified.

Instrument choice

In order to impose an eTA requirement on visa-exempt foreign nationals travelling to Canada via marine mode from St. Pierre and Miquelon, a regulatory change is necessary and is the only option. As a result, other instruments were not considered.

Regulatory analysis

Benefits and costs

An important first step in developing a cost-benefit methodology is establishing a baseline scenario against which options may be measured. For this analysis, the baseline scenario is one where visa-exempt foreign nationals seeking to enter Canada by vessel directly from St. Pierre and Miquelon are not required to obtain an eTA to enter Canada, and are screened for admissibility and eligibility at the port of entry in Newfoundland and Labrador. The baseline scenario is then compared with the regulatory scenario, in which visa-exempt foreign nationals will be required to obtain an eTA when seeking to travel to and enter Canada by vessel directly from St. Pierre and Miquelon, with certain exemptions. Of note, eTAs are currently only required for air travel. Imposing an eTA requirement for those entering Canada by vessel directly from St. Pierre and Miquelon will help secure Canada’s borders and deter a source of irregular migration, which may pose risks to public security.

Applications for an eTA can be made at any time before boarding. The CBSA will validate whether passengers are properly documented for travel by vessel to Canada, and will provide recommendations regarding the denial of boarding to vessel operators, where applicable. Border services officers at the port of entry in Newfoundland and Labrador will continue to conduct examinations and assess admissibility in Newfoundland and Labrador prior to admitting visa-exempt foreign nationals into Canada.

The Amendments will result in both transition and ongoing costs to IRCC and the CBSA to implement and monitor changes, and are estimated at $244,000 over 10 periods of 12 months.

There are no anticipated costs to French citizens residing in St. Pierre and Miquelon resulting from the Amendments, as these residents will remain exempt from the eTA requirement. It is also anticipated that the tourism-related impacts of this measure on Newfoundland and Labrador are manageable. When excluding exempted cruise ship traffic, French citizens residing in St. Pierre and Miquelon and citizens and lawful permanent residents of the United States (all of whom would be exempt from this requirement), it is anticipated that a maximum of approximately 1 000 visitors per year will be impacted.

It is acknowledged that there are costs for these travellers seeking to enter Canada by vessel directly from St. Pierre and Miquelon, in terms of time spent completing an eTA application (estimated at 10 minutes) and the application fee of Can$7. Of note, however, many of these 1 000 visitors to St. Pierre and Miquelon arrive via Canada, and therefore will likely already have a valid eTA or be subject to the contiguous territory exemption. If approved, subject to certain exceptions, an eTA is valid for five years, or until the holder’s passport expires, and so visa-exempt foreign nationals may incur this cost every five years as required. To note, foreign nationals not residing in Canada do not have standing for cost-benefit analysis (CBA) purposes thus are out of scope.

Costs
Costs to IRCC

Incremental costs to IRCC will consist of both transition and ongoing costs. Transition costs are estimated at $77,000 and include costs such as updates to communications products and program delivery instructions and responding to public and media inquiries. There will also be costs for IT updates such as systems design and maintenance. These costs will be incurred in 2026.

Ongoing costs to IRCC are estimated at $8,000 per year and reflect the costs to respond to operational questions and provide functional guidance, oversee program operations and other ongoing monitoring and maintenance activities. There are no expected costs related to processing a higher volume of eTAs, since eTAs are fully cost recovered by the application fee.

Costs to the CBSA

The CBSA would also incur costs, estimated at approximately $167,000 over 10 periods of 12 months. These are comprised of transition costs totalling $74,000 and ongoing costs of $9,300 per year. Transition costs reflect costs for communications products, updates to standard operating procedures and operational bulletins, and oversight of the implementation process. Ongoing costs include responding to operational guidance questions, monitoring and oversight, messaging updates, and developing mitigation plans to address any issues that may arise. There will also be costs to update impacted transporters on eTA eligibility. No CBSA IT system changes are anticipated, as the process will remain manual. The CBSA currently manually reviews and processes travellers coming from St. Pierre and Miquelon on a case-by-case basis. The implementation of an eTA may make these reviews and processing easier (due to the advance notice of information) and, therefore, no costs associated with any additional manual processes are expected.

Costs to operators of marine passenger vessels between Canada and St. Pierre and Miquelon

It is acknowledged that there are minor costs expected for SPM Ferries, in terms of a minimal increase in information shared with the CBSA, time to deny boarding to passengers who do not have the required eTAs, and a potential minor decrease in ticket sales from ineligible travellers.

There are no expected costs for private or other commercial vessels travelling between St. Pierre and Miquelon and Canada, as this requirement would not change existing procedures for operators of these vessels.

Benefits
Benefits to the CBSA

The Amendments are expected to deter non-genuine travellers from arriving in Canada, reducing operational pressure on CBSA officers at the Fortune port of entry. The changes would also reduce downstream enforcement activities (e.g. removals), thus supporting the CBSA’s operations long-term.

The CBSA anticipates benefits resulting from avoiding inadmissible or non-genuine arrivals to Canada by vessel from St. Pierre and Miquelon. Cost savings include time saved from security screening, port of entry processing, and potential downstream enforcement activities for this cohort. Assuming similar travel and enforcement patterns in future years, it is estimated that the implementation of the eTA requirement for visa-exempt foreign nationals arriving by vessel would result in the avoidance of up to 100 persons of interest each year who could be screened out or deterred by the eTA application process, including inadmissible and non-genuine travellers arriving in Canada.

Benefits for Canadians

The Amendments will strengthen border integrity as well as the immigration program by adding an extra layer of security to an entry point that could be exploited by non-genuine travellers. Therefore, there will be increased confidence in the safety and security of the border, knowing that an additional cohort of foreign nationals will now be screened prior to arrival in Canada. Reducing and preventing new non-genuine travellers may also have broader benefits to local communities and social and criminal justice systems.

Small business lens

Analysis under the small business lens determined that the Amendments will not impact small businesses in Canada.

One-for-one rule

The one-for-one rule does not apply to the Amendments, as there is no change in administrative costs or burden on businesses and no regulatory titles are repealed or introduced.

Regulatory cooperation and alignment

The Amendments do not present any challenges with respect to regulatory cooperation and alignment.

International obligations

The Amendments do not affect obligations arising from Canada’s international trade agreements.

Effects on the environment

In accordance with the Cabinet Directive on Strategic Environmental and Economic Assessment (SEEA Directive), a preliminary scan concluded that a strategic environmental and economic assessment is not required.

Gender-based analysis plus

A gender-based analysis plus (GBA+) assessment of the Amendments found no negative impacts related to gender or other identity factors. Overall, the analysis highlighted that the introduction of an eTA requirement in marine mode between St. Pierre and Miquelon and Canada does not intentionally target specific groups of travellers. Based on recent data, the gender characteristics are broadly gender-balanced among the general traveller population.

Rationale

Exemptions to the eTA Requirement

Cruise ships are being exempted from this new eTA requirement because most cruise ships travelling from St. Pierre and Miquelon to Canada have, before arriving in St. Pierre and Miquelon, travelled from Canada or the United States. This means that visa-exempt foreign nationals aboard these vessels have been screened by Canada or a border security partner. The Amendments use an established definition of a cruise ship within the Government of Canada.

Vessel crew members are being exempted from this new eTA requirement to ensure consistency with the existing visa exemption for crew members of vessels in the Regulations that support Canada’s commitments under the International Labour Organization (ILO) Conventions.

Implementation, compliance and enforcement, and service standards

Implementation

The Amendments come into force on June 5, 2026, at 1:00 a.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST). At that time, visa-exempt foreign nationals seeking to enter Canada from St. Pierre and Miquelon will require an eTA for travel in marine mode unless otherwise exempt. IRCC Communications will leverage its social media channels to share messaging on the new travel requirements with visa-exempt foreign nationals intending to travel to St. Pierre and Miquelon. Government of Canada websites will also be updated to communicate the expansion of the eTA requirement to marine entry from St. Pierre and Miquelon.

IRCC and the CBSA will engage with marine industry stakeholders to support transporters during the transition. Since the eTA is an electronic document with no physical copy that can be provided to operators, the CBSA will validate that visa-exempt foreign nationals hold a valid eTA before they board a vessel to Canada or confirm that they hold the correct documentation when arriving at the port of entry in Fortune or at other ports of entry as required. The impacts of this change will be monitored and evaluated with existing information and according to existing practices.

Contact

Sabrina Mahfouz
Director
Visitors Program
Visitors Branch
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
365 Laurier Avenue West, 8th Floor
Ottawa, Ontario
Email: sabrina.mahfouz@cic.gc.ca