WASHINGTON — The largely closed U.S.-Canadian border will creak open slightly Tuesday morning as Canada begins allowing some close family members to reunite north of the border — as long as they plan to stay for at least two weeks.
Speaking at his daily media briefing in Ottawa on Monday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his government will begin allowing some close relatives of Canadians or Canadian nationals to travel north to visit family. But the new policy is extremely limited; for example, it doesn't even cover siblings. What's more, the policy still requires those entering Canada to quarantine for 14 days.
“This is an incredibly difficult time to be apart from a spouse, a child or mom or dad. We hear that," Trudeau said. “That’s why we are bringing in a limited exemption to allow immediate family members of citizens or permanent residents to come to Canada.”
The U.S.-Canadian border has been closed to nonessential travel since March 20 in hopes of slowing the spread of the novel coronavirus. The closure, which has been extended twice, is now set to expire June 22.
But if anything, Trudeau's move Monday shows that any reopening will likely be partial, given that Canadian officials stressed that preventing the spread of Covid-19 remains paramount.
That being the case, the new policy allowing family visits is extremely narrow in scope. It defines immediate family as spouses, common-law partners, dependent children, parents or step-parents, and guardians or tutors. And anyone showing symptoms of Covid-19 will be turned away at the border.
What's more, Trudeau's move will require anyone entering Canada to visit family to quarantine north of the border for 14 days. If they don't, they could face stiff penalties: a $750,000 and/or six months in prison. And if someone breaking quarantine were to endanger a Canadian's life as a result, those penalties increase to a $1 million fine and three years in prison.
"f you don’t follow these rules, you could face serious penalties,” Trudeau said. “All this is difficult and frustrating, and longer than we hoped it would be in many ways, but at the same time we know that the cost of having to return into social isolation, return into lockdown because of a massive resurgence is not one that anyone wants to bear, which is why we are being very cautious going forward."
Prior to the new policy, families could reunite in Canada only if the Canada Border Services Agency deemed such visits essential.
The goal of the new policy is only to allow families to reunite when necessary, Canadian Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino said at a separate briefing, according to Global News Canada.
“To be clear, the immediate family exemption does not mean the border will now be opened again to travellers or those seeking to attend a personal or social gathering,” Mendicino said.
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