ARCHIVED – Notice - Lifting of Direct Access in Designated Geographic Areas

Note: Contact information that is inaccurate or no longer in use has been removed from this page.

October 7, 2011 — Effective October 6, 2011, the Source Country class has been repealed. This means that individuals can no longer apply for resettlement to Canada under the Source Country class.

As part of the measures taken to repeal the Source Country class, Canada also ended direct access in designated geographic areas as of November 5, 2011. This means that applicants in the countries listed below will be required, as of November 5. As per CIC’s operating procedures, applicants were given 30 days notice in advance of ending direct access. A web notice to this effect was posted on October 7, 2011.

With the end of direct access, this means that applicants in the countries listed below must now be referred for resettlement to Canada by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, or include a referral from a designated referral organization or a private sponsor with their resettlement application in order to apply for resettlement.

These changes apply to people residing in the following countries:

Country Canadian Visa Office
DR Congo Nairobi, Kenya
Sudan Cairo, Egypt
El Salvador Guatemala City, Guatemala
Guatemala Guatemala City, Guatemala
Colombia Bogota, Colombia
Sierra Leone Accra, Ghana

What about applications for permanent residence under the Source Country class that have already been submitted?

  • Applications that were approved in principle when the regulatory changes came into effect on October 6, 2011, will be processed to completion. If all the relevant criteria are met, visas will be issued.
  • Applications that were not approved in principle by October 6, 2011, will be assessed under the remaining refugee classes (i.e., Convention Refugee Abroad class and Country of Asylum class).

What about new applications for people in need of protection who wish to resettle in Canada as refugees?

People in need of protection who wish to resettle in Canada as refugees (as of November 5, 2011), must now be referred for resettlement to Canada by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, or include a referral from a designated referral organization or a private sponsor with their resettlement application in order to apply for resettlement.

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