Visitor visas and eTAs are suspended for last residence in Congo, Uganda, or South Sudan until November 27, 2026.
The September 28, 2026 notice extends the suspension 60 days. It follows the country you listed as last residence, not the passport.
IRCC’s September 28, 2026 notice extends the Ebola immigration measures until November 27, 2026. A visa or eTA already issued does not authorize travel if the last country of residence on the application was the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, or South Sudan.
The extension is 60 days, to November 27, 2026
The notice, dated Ottawa, September 28, 2026, says IRCC extended the temporary immigration measures for 60 days, until November 27, 2026. It names the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, and South Sudan. It says immigration documents remain suspended for residents of those countries, and that people whose last country of residence at the time of their application was one of them cannot travel to Canada, even with a previously approved visa, permit, or electronic travel authorization. Applications continue, and are not finalized, while the measures are in place.
The special-measures page is the operational text: the measure follows the last country of residence on the application, not citizenship. Suspended documents include temporary resident visas, electronic travel authorizations, temporary resident permit counterfoils, and permanent resident visas. A suspended document is temporarily not valid for boarding or travel. Do not mail a passport to a visa application centre to finish a visa from an affected country. The VAC cannot finalize it and will not hold the passport. If that page still shows an end date of September 28, 2026, use the September 28 notice for the extension to November 27.
The processing-time tool already says these files are not being finalized
The processing-times page states that foreign nationals living in those three countries are temporarily not permitted to travel, that IRCC is not finalizing the applications, and that the time may be longer than the figure on the tool. How to read any other country’s number is the processing-time page. This suspension is not a ties or funds refusal, and it is not an eTA eligibility rule.
Canada Ebola visa measures FAQ
Through what date did the September 28, 2026 notice extend the Ebola immigration measures?
IRCC’s notice of September 28, 2026 says the temporary immigration measures are extended for 60 days, until November 27, 2026. Immigration documents remain suspended for residents of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, and South Sudan.
Is the suspension based on citizenship or on the last country of residence on the application?
The special-measures page says the measures are applied based on the last country of residence in the application, not citizenship. A person who was living outside those countries when the document was issued is not in that residence rule. Read the page for the exception that applies to your dates.
Can a visa or eTA that was already approved be used to travel while the documents are suspended?
The September 28, 2026 notice says people whose last country of residence was one of the listed countries cannot travel to Canada at this time, even with a previously approved visa, permit, or electronic travel authorization. The special-measures page says a suspended document is temporarily not valid for boarding a plane or travelling to Canada.
Are new applications refused, or left unfinished?
Both the notice and the special-measures page say IRCC will keep processing new and existing applications affected by the measures, and will not finalize them while the measures are in place. The processing-times tool says the displayed time may be longer if the last country of residence was one of the three.
Watch the questions, the analysis, and the evidence
Check out this video to learn about answering a number of questions, get free analysis and personalized evidences for your application.
8 major factors Canada visa officer checks
| Officer checks | What they may look at |
|---|---|
Why Canada? Tourism, family visit, event, business, etc.; itinerary; duration; whether the activities make sense | Why Canada? Tourism, family visit, event, business, etc.; itinerary; duration; whether the activities make sense |
Employment, business, property, spouse, children, family responsibilities, studies, other obligations | Employment, business, property, spouse, children, family responsibilities, studies, other obligations |
Job stability, position, salary, length of employment, approved leave, business ownership and activity | Job stability, position, salary, length of employment, approved leave, business ownership and activity |
Bank balances, transaction history, income, savings, source of funds, ability to pay for the trip and return | Bank balances, transaction history, income, savings, source of funds, ability to pay for the trip and return |
Family remaining in the home country versus relatives/family in Canada; overall circumstances | Family remaining in the home country versus relatives/family in Canada; overall circumstances |
Previous international travel, visas, compliance with previous visits, previous Canadian/US/UK/Schengen travel, etc. | Previous international travel, visas, compliance with previous visits, previous Canadian/US/UK/Schengen travel, etc. |
Previous refusals, overstays, unauthorized work/study, removals, previous applications and information provided | Previous refusals, overstays, unauthorized work/study, removals, previous applications and information provided |
Criminality, security, medical/financial inadmissibility, misrepresentation, and whether the information/documents are consistent and credible | Criminality, security, medical/financial inadmissibility, misrepresentation, and whether the information/documents are consistent and credible |
What is ImmigrationDM?
ImmigrationDM makes it easy to respond to a Canada visitor visa refusal.
You can use the Refusal Analysis to read the officer's reasons and see the missing paper. It asks about country, purpose, funds, and home ties, then you paste the letter. You get the concerns in order and the documents that prove each claim.
The free checkers test the money side of the file before you submit. The Source of Funds Checker shows whether the file explains where the money came from. The Trip Cost Checker compares the trip you typed with the balance you typed.
No matter where you are after a Canada visitor visa refusal, ImmigrationDM is here to help you prepare the next file.
Tools to help with a stronger application
Same checkers as the tool pages. They run on what you type.
Source of Funds Checker
Trip Cost Checker
Canada immigration laws
The consolidated Act and Regulations on Justice Laws. IRPA 34 to 42 is the on-site grounds page.
- IRPR — Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations
- IRPR 179 — temporary resident visa
- IRPR 180 — a visa is not entry
- IRPR 180.1 — cancelling a visa
- IRPR 183 — how long the stay lasts
- IRPR 30 — medical examination
- IRPA — Immigration and Refugee Protection Act
- IRPA 11(1) — the examination
- IRPA 20(1)(b) — leave at the end of the stay
- IRPA 22(2) — dual intent
- IRPA 39 — financial inadmissibility
- IRPA 40 — misrepresentation
- IRPA 34 to 42 — inadmissibility grounds
GCMS notes versus officer decision notes
The decision note comes with the refusal letter. GCMS notes are the rest of the file.
GCMS notes vs officer decision notesWhich applications get the note with the letter, from which date, and when you still request the file.Read the guideInadmissible grounds
IRPA sections 34 to 42 are the grounds. A letter that cites IRPR 179(b) is a different test.
Canada inadmissibility groundsSecurity through an inadmissible family member, and why a standard visitor refusal is not that finding.Read the guideOther Canada visitor visa immigration resources
These pages cover the refusal letter, the money, the ties, and the papers that change by country.
How to read the refusal letter
The letter cites IRPR 179(b) when the officer wasn't satisfied you'll leave Canada. Read the factors under that line before you apply again.
Read the guideWhat to change before you pay again
Match each factor on the letter to the document that answers it. Sending the same file again rarely changes the result.
Read the guideYou can reapply. There is no waiting period.
IRCC doesn't set a cooling-off period. The next officer already has the refused file, so the new one has to be different.
Read the guideWhen a lump does not match income
A large closing balance doesn't show where the money came from, whether you can use it, or whether income continues.
Read the guideWhat weak ties means
The officer is saying the file doesn't prove you will go home. This page shows how officers measure ties.
Read the guideThe reasons behind most refusals
Travel history, ties, purpose, and funds are different officer concerns. Each phrase on the letter points at different paper.
Read the guideHow to reapply in 2026
This page covers the 2026 reapplication rules, GCMS notes, and the order of a resubmission.
Read the guideCanada visitor visa from Nigeria
Processing time, fees in naira, and the CAC and FIRS papers a Nigerian business file uses.
Read the guideA graduation visit refused three times
A Nigerian sibling case: the officer note, the source-of-funds gap, and what the next file had to add.
Read the guide
Documents after a refusal, by country
- Documents that answer a India refusal
- Documents that answer a Nigeria refusal
- Documents that answer a Philippines refusal
- Documents that answer a Pakistan refusal
- Documents that answer a Ghana refusal
- Documents that answer a Bangladesh refusal
- Documents that answer a Cameroon refusal
- Documents that answer a China refusal
- Documents that answer a Kenya refusal
- Documents that answer a Singapore refusal
Related
This page expires with the measure.
After November 27, 2026, open the IRCC notice again. Do not travel on this summary once the date has passed.
Open the IRCC notice →Sources
- IRCC notice, September 28, 2026 — measures extended 60 days, until November 27, 2026, for the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, and South Sudan
- IRCC — Ebola temporary measures: last country of residence, suspended documents, applications not finalized, do not send a passport to a VAC
- IRCC processing times — applications from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, and South Sudan are not being finalized
General information from the regulation and IRCC’s public pages. Not legal advice. Not a prediction of a visa decision.