Travel

  1. The CBSA wishes you happy holidays and gives tips for smoother travel this season
  2. Safe and inclusive public spaces and dynamic tourism attractions are key to vibrant communities. They bring together people of all ages and abilities, in turn supporting businesses and boosting economic vitality. Throughout Sea to Sky Country, communities are welcoming residents and visitors alike to enjoy new and improved public spaces and tourism experiences.
  3. Today, Ron McKinnon, Member of Parliament for Coquitlam-Port Coquitlam, announced $750,000 in funding for the City of Coquitlam through PacifiCan’s Canada Community Revitalization Fund.
  4. Today, Randeep S. Sarai, Member of Parliament for Surrey Centre, announced an investment of $1,034,000 in PacifiCan funding for three projects across Surrey through the Canada Community Revitalization Fund (CCRF).
  5. Safe and inclusive public spaces and dynamic tourism attractions are key to vibrant communities. They bring together people of all ages and abilities, supporting businesses and boosting economic vitality.
  6. Safe and inclusive public spaces and dynamic tourism attractions are key to vibrant communities. They bring together people of all ages and abilities, supporting businesses and boosting economic vitality.
  7. Yesterday, the Honourable Carla Qualtrough, Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, met with the National Airlines Council of Canada (NACC) to discuss a shared commitment to do more for persons with disabilities when they travel by air.
  8. Service Canada is prepared to resume all services at Service Canada Centres and Passport offices following the end of the public service labour disruption.
  9. The following information will help applicants across Canada choose the best service option for passports in their area based on their specific needs.
  10. The Memorandum of Understanding will contribute to the growth of Canada’s tourism sector.
  11. In learning the lessons of a very challenging period, and applying them for the future, this Government is setting up the passport program to be more reliable, more flexible, and more capable of serving Canadians effectively for years to come. Today, the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, Karina Gould, announced the launch of a new online Passport Application Status Checker.
  12. Beginning in August 2022, Service Canada started to roll out 10-day passport pick-up service at 13 Service Canada Centres across the country. Canadians can apply for a passport at these locations and receive it after 10 business days. The passport can either be mailed or be picked up in person.
  13. The Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, Karina Gould, will provide an update on passport service delivery.
  14. The Honourable Harjit S. Sajjan, Minister of International Development and Minister responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency of Canada, will announce funding for Science World, one of the largest tourism attractions in B.C.
  15. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, small businesses – from coffee shops to campgrounds – played a critical role in sustaining communities across British Columbia. Small businesses in the tourism sector were especially hard hit, yet they continued to serve as the lifeblood of local economies, offering British Columbians much-needed reprieve.
  16. COVID-19 had a significant impact on Canadian tourism as travel restrictions, both domestically and internationally, reduced visits to attractions across the country. The Government of Canada created the Tourism Relief Fund (TRF) to support tourism businesses and organizations investing their future growth, while safely welcoming visitors once again.
  17. Service Canada staff are working hard to serve Canadians and decrease passport wait times as they work through unprecedented demands. Since April 1, 2022, close to 1.2 million Canadian passports have been issued. Service Canada continues to introduce a variety of new measures to improve passport service delivery.
  18. Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Maninder Sidhu will be in Barrie, Ontario, to announce new measures to improve passport service delivery.
  19. Service Canada staff are working hard to serve Canadians and decrease passport wait times as they work through unprecedented demands. Since April 1, 2022, over a million Canadian passports have been issued. Service Canada continues to introduce a variety of new measures to improve passport service delivery.
  20. Public spaces are the heart of communities across Canada. They bring together people of all ages and abilities, supporting businesses, and stimulating local economies. In Oliver, like many places across Canada, the community is ready to welcome back residents and visitors alike to enhanced community facilities and public spaces.
  21. Service Canada continues to introduce a variety of new measures to improve passport service delivery and decrease wait times for Canadians as it works through unprecedented demands. The triage system introduced this summer in 17 of our 35 passport offices has made a significant impact in reducing lineups and redirecting Canadians to the appropriate means to access service.
  22. The Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Official Languages, Marc Serré and Member of Parliament for Sudbury, Viviane Lapointe, will be in Sudbury to announce new measures to improve passport service delivery.
  23. The Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, Mark Gerretsen, will be in Kingston to announce new measures to improve passport service delivery.
  24. Public spaces are the heart of communities across Canada. They bring together people of all ages and abilities, supporting businesses and stimulating local economies. In Armstrong, like many places across Canada, the community is ready to welcome back residents and visitors alike to enhanced community facilities and public spaces.
  25. Shared public spaces are the heart of communities across Canada. They bring together people of all ages and abilities, supporting businesses and stimulating local economies. In New Westminster, like many places across Canada, the community is ready to welcome back residents and visitors alike to enhanced community facilities and public spaces.
  26. Service Canada continues to introduce a variety of new measures to improve passport service delivery and decrease wait times for Canadians as it works through unprecedented demands. The triage system introduced this summer in 17 of our 35 passport offices has made a significant impact in reducing lineups and redirecting Canadians to the appropriate means to access service. The average wait time at call centres has also improved, going from a peak of 108 minutes in April to 27 minutes last week.
  27. Service Canada continues to introduce a variety of new measures to improve passport service delivery and decrease wait times for Canadians as it works through unprecedented demands. The triage system introduced this summer in 17 of our 35 passport offices has made a significant impact in reducing lineups and redirecting Canadians to the appropriate means to access service. The average wait time at call centres has also improved, going from a peak of 108 minutes in April to 27 minutes last week.
  28. The Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance, Randy Boissonnault, will be in Red Deer to announce additional passport pick-up locations across the country.
  29. The Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, Karina Gould will be in Trois-Rivières to announce additional passport pick-up locations across the country.
  30. The Government of Canada continues to support the tourism sector for a strong recovery and future growth.
  31. Today, the Honourable Harjit S. Sajjan, Minister responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency of Canada (PacifiCan), announced $450,000 in funding to the Vancouver Pride Society (VPS) to expand its programming by adding additional events during the Vancouver Pride Festival in the summer as well as new events in the fall and winter seasons.
  32. “Service Canada staff are working hard to provide passports to Canadians as quickly as possible. At the same time, staff are doing everything they can to give Canadians a better service experience as they go through the passport process.
  33. Passport services continue to receive our full attention as we work to improve service delivery. While passport services are not yet back to normal, we have added another tool to share information with Canadians and communicate our progress.
  34. Passport services are not yet back to normal, but we continue to see improvements at passport offices across the country. The team at Service Canada is 100% engaged in getting them there as soon as possible.
  35. Canadians deserve access to timely, efficient, and transparent passport delivery services. We’re continuing to tackle big challenges in the passport program, and as the summer progresses, thanks to the hard work of Service Canada staff, we continue to see improvements in service delivery.
  36. “The Canadian passport is a valuable document that Canadians rely upon for international business travel, vacations, and visits to family and friends. Canadians should be able to obtain a new or renewed passport in a timely manner. I remain seized with resolving this unacceptable situation as quickly as possible.
  37. Q. What is the government doing to fix the situation? Service Canada is examining and implementing every possible option to expedite intake and processing of applications to help Canadians get their passports in a timely way.
  38. Statement from Minister Gould on further steps to improve passport processing
  39. “I am deeply concerned about the delivery of passport services to Canadians, and the difficult and stressful situation too many Canadians are facing in getting passports in time for their travel plans. Improving this service is a top priority for the Government of Canada.
  40. Today, the Honourable Karina Gould, Minister of Children, Families and Social Development, issued the following statement:
  41. Over the period of the COVID-19 pandemic, the volume of passport applications was relatively low, due to a reduction in travel following the imposition of public health restrictions and travel advisories. With the easing of restrictions and the resumption of travel, Service Canada has experienced an increase in passport applications across the country. In the first two years of the pandemic, only 20% of normal passport volume was received (from April 1, 2020 to March 31, 2021- 363,000 passports, and from April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022 - 1,273,000 passports issued). Since April 1, 2022, over 542,000 applications were received. As a result, Service Canada is experiencing increased passport processing times and is prioritizing those travelling imminently.
  42. Heavy flooding in North Dakota that resulted in highway closures has now receded. Therefore, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) has resumed service at Gretna.
  43. With pandemic restrictions easing around the world, interest in travel is growing among Canadians, and demand for new or renewed passports is growing along with it. Service Canada is experiencing increases in passport processing times, and is responding by prioritizing those travelling imminently and ensuring that those with less urgent needs can access the right service channels for them.
  44. The CBSA welcomed one million travellers in a week for the first time since the start of the pandemic