August 28, 2026: Canada Extends Ebola Border Measures to September 28

On August 28, 2026, the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) announced that Canada’s temporary Ebola-related border measures are extended for another 30 days. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) updated its Ebola temporary measures page the same day. The measures now run until 23:59:59 ET on September 28, 2026.

That matters for anyone whose travel, visa, eTA, or permanent-resident visa is tied to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Uganda, or South Sudan. Earlier July end dates (August 28 for IRCC document suspensions and August 29 for related public-health measures) are no longer the operative ones on those official pages. Canada still reports no cases of Ebola disease domestically and describes the domestic risk as low.

What stayed the same

The August 28 update is an extension, not a redesign. The core rules remain:

• Residence-based document suspensions for foreign nationals who listed the DRC, Uganda, or South Sudan as their last country of residence on an immigration application. Suspended documents include temporary resident visas, eTAs, temporary resident permit counterfoils, and permanent resident visas.
• Continued processing, no finalization while the measures are in force. IRCC will keep processing affected applications, but will not finalize them until the measures end or are repealed.
• DRC recent-travel ban (since July 20, 2026): foreign nationals who have been in the DRC within the previous 21 days cannot travel to Canada, and air carriers remain directed not to board them.
• Quarantine and screening for eligible travellers who have been in the affected countries within the previous 21 days, including arrival health assessment and, without symptoms, a 21-day quarantine unless an exemption applies.

Citizenship alone does not decide whether a document is suspended. IRCC applies the residence-based measure based on the last country of residence on the immigration application.

Practical effects for applicants and travellers

If your document is suspended, IRCC says it is temporarily not valid for boarding or travel to Canada. When the measures end, a valid document is automatically reactivated — you do not need a separate reactivation request. The suspension does not extend the document’s expiry date. If the visa or eTA will expire soon, you still need a new application for future travel.

IRCC also warns affected applicants who receive a passport request not to send their passport to a visa application centre while the measures are active. VACs cannot finalize those files under the current rules, and a submitted passport may be returned with additional fees. People already in Canada when the measures began keep their authorized status for the period already granted.

Who can still enter, and who needs an exemption

Canadian citizens, permanent residents, and people registered under the Indian Act can return to Canada after recent presence in the DRC, Uganda, or South Sudan, subject to arrival screening and quarantine rules on the PHAC border-measures page.

Foreign nationals with recent travel only to Uganda or South Sudan may still be able to travel if they hold a valid temporary resident visa or eTA and a valid passport, and if they are not caught by the residence-based suspension — but they remain subject to screening and quarantine. Foreign nationals with DRC presence in the previous 21 days remain prohibited from entering or boarding, subject to narrow PHAC exemptions.

IRCC accepts case-by-case exemption requests for the immigration measures through its crisis web form. Evidence can include proof you were outside the affected countries for at least 21 days before the measures started on May 27, 2026, steps taken to reduce public-health risk, and any urgent protection or humanitarian reasons.

What to do this week

1. Re-read IRCC’s Ebola temporary measures and PHAC’s border-measures pages immediately before booking, boarding, or sending documents.
2. If you received a suspension email, update IRCC if your email address has changed, and do not assume an old August 28/29 expiry still applies.
3. Do not send a passport to a VAC for finalization while the residence-based measure applies to your file.
4. If you believe you qualify for an exemption, use IRCC’s crisis web form (or PHAC’s process for the DRC boarding ban) and keep copies of supporting documents.
5. Build a quarantine plan before arrival if you are eligible to enter after recent travel to an affected country.

If these measures affect your visa, eTA, permanent-residence file, or travel plans, contact JSR Immigration & Legals through our consultation page to discuss the next administrative steps available to you.

This article provides general information current to August 29, 2026. It is not legal, immigration, or medical advice. Temporary public-health and immigration measures can change without notice; always confirm the current official requirements on Canada.ca before travelling or filing.