September 29, 2026: IRCC Lifts the 12-Month PRRA Wait for Israel and Palestine

On September 29, 2026, IRCC published a notice that lifts the usual 12-month wait to apply for a pre-removal risk assessment (PRRA) for some nationals and former residents of Israel and of Palestine. The notice, page details 2026-09-29, says people in that group may now be eligible if they received a final negative decision between September 28, 2025, and September 29, 2026.

The same dates appear on IRCC's exemptions page, also last modified 2026-09-29. That page lists Israel and Palestine for negative decisions on or between those dates.

A PRRA is the assessment IRCC uses before removal to look at persecution, torture, a danger to life, or cruel and unusual treatment or punishment. Being allowed to apply is not the same as being allowed to stay.

Who the notice says can apply now

The ordinary rule is a 12-month wait after a negative protection decision. IRCC can lift that wait when country conditions change suddenly. This notice is that lift. It is a dated exemption, not a new permanent program.

The notice covers nationals and former residents of Israel and of Palestine who received a final negative decision, in that window, on one of these:

• an asylum (refugee) claim from the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada
• a previous PRRA application
• a Federal Court decision related to their case

The exemptions page uses a shorter test. You must come from an exempt country, and the negative decision must fall on or between the dates shown for that country.

The officer program delivery update, dated September 29, 2026, uses a start date two days later. It says nationals are exempt if the Immigration and Refugee Board, Federal Court, or previous PRRA decision was made between September 30, 2025 and September 29, 2026 inclusive. Decisions after September 29, 2026 stay under the 12-month bar.

If your decision date is September 28 or September 29, 2025, do not guess. The public pages and the officer instructions do not use the same start date. Confirm the live pages before you treat yourself as exempt.

Who is still outside the exemption

Nationals and former residents of Israel or Palestine who receive a final negative decision after September 29, 2026 are not eligible to apply for a PRRA for 12 months. IRCC's stated reason is that current country conditions would already have been considered in the asylum claim or the earlier PRRA.

Eligibility to apply does not decide the outcome. Officers decide each case on the information provided. You must keep the application up to date and tell IRCC about changes.

A person subject to a removal order for serious inadmissibility, or a person previously excluded from refugee protection, may be eligible only for a restricted PRRA. That is a narrower assessment.

What this means for you

This change is about when you may apply, not whether Canada will grant protection. A lifted wait does not freeze a removal order. The Canada Border Services Agency carries out removal.

1. Read the September 29 notice and the exemptions table and match your decision date to both.
2. If the date is September 28 or 29, 2025, also read the officer update. Do not assume the public start date will be the one applied.
3. Keep any PRRA application current. IRCC says you must report changes.
4. Do not treat eligibility to apply as permission to stay.

People with a decision after September 29, 2026 should plan on the ordinary 12-month wait unless IRCC publishes a further exemption. This notice does not change Express Entry, study permits, work permits, or the Parents and Grandparents Program.

If a removal order, a refused refugee claim, or a PRRA deadline is already on your file, contact JSR Immigration & Legals through our consultation page or the refugee service page. Appeals and judicial-review questions sit on our immigration appeals page.

This article is general information current to October 2, 2026, and is not legal or immigration advice. Confirm the live notice and exemptions table on Canada.ca before you file.