For reliable information about required Travel Documents for dual Canadian citizens flying to Canada, see
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/visit/dual-canadian-citizens.asp
The effective date is September 30.
It warrants noting and emphasizing that the changes taking place likewise affect PRs with visa-exempt passports, who will for sure, as of September 30, be required to present a valid PR card or PR Travel Document in order to board a flight headed to Canada. Which is say that applicants for citizenship who travel abroad, while their citizenship application is in process, will need to have a valid PR card, or obtain a PR TD, to return to Canada by air (or, for that matter, by any commercial mode of transport), even if they carry a visa-exempt passport. (See http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/newcomers/about-pr.asp at the IRCC website.)
The practical impact of the changes taking effect, as of September 30, include:
-- Canadian citizens will need to present a Canadian passport to board a flight to Canada, and this includes dual Canadian citizens who previously were allowed to board a flight to Canada by displaying a passport from a visa-exempt country.
-- Canadian PRs will need to present a valid PR card or a PR Travel Document to board a flight to Canada, and this includes those PRs who have in the past been able to board a flight to Canada by displaying a passport from a visa-exempt country.
The latter includes, of course, those PRs applying for citizenship.
Canadian PRs and dual Canadian citizens who are also a U.S. citizen probably are not affected at all by these changes. They definitely will not be affected when they travel by means other than flying. The odds are very high there will be no effect when flying to Canada from the U.S. I cannot say for sure Americans will not encounter an issue when flying to Canada from some other country, although my sense is that a U.S. passport gets the traveler on a plane headed to Canada no matter where the flight originates. More regarding U.S. citizens below, in the longer observations.
Little more needs to said about this. The impact itself is straightforward: beginning September 30, Canadians flying to Canada will need to present proper Canadian travel documents to board the flight; thus, Canadian citizens will need to present a valid Canadian passport and Canadian PRs will need to present a currently valid PR card (or obtain and present a PR TD).
However, since these changes are due to the full enforcement of eTA requirements, which actually have no direct bearing on either Canadian citizens or Canadian PRs, some may be interested in questions about the legal authority for these changes, particularly given the fact that there has been no change in the laws or regulations governing either dual Canadian citizens or PRs.
Rather, in so far as there have been changes, the impact on dual Canadian citizens and PRs is a collateral effect.
I address how-so below.
Below I will take the long way around (as usual) to explain that, essentially, what the implementation of eTA has done, is that it precludes Canadians from using a visa-exempt passport to board a flight to Canada, and thus requires them to show a proper Travel Document as prescribed: a Canadian passport if the traveler is a Canadian citizen; a PR card or PR TD if the traveler is a Canadian PR. For those interested in a more thorough understanding about how this works, I hope the lengthy observations below will illuminate things at least a little.
Lengthy, in-depth observations about changes taking place:
Most will want to skip these in-depth and lengthy observations and explanations.
Some general observations:
This information, that dual Canadian citizens will need a Canadian passport to board a flight to Canada after September 29, has been known and discussed in this forum going back many months, since shortly after eTA became mandatory (but subject to a leniency period until September 29) in early March this year, when IRCC posted a web page alerting dual citizens that a Canadian passport would be required to board flights to Canada beginning September 30.
The recent Star article was probably triggered by new, more prominent cautionary messages IRCC is currently posting at its website, including a very prominent news banner cautioning that entry requirements into Canada are changing for those flying to Canada. This includes, in particular, changes affecting dual citizens.
There has been far more extensive discussion about the changes, including the impact on dual citizens, in multiple topics in the conference about PR obligations (mostly earlier in the year).
In any event, there is nothing new in the substance of what is now posted at the IRCC website. But the content has been revised to more prominently and clearly explain the changes and their impact, particularly as to dual Canadian citizens.
To access direct information about the changes, see the IRCC website specifically about "Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA)" and information at pages linked there:
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/visit/eta.asp
And in particular, again, for more specific information about required Travel Documents for dual Canadian citizens flying to Canada, see
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/visit/dual-canadian-citizens.asp
Meanwhile, similar information for PRs has long been posted here:
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/newcomers/about-pr.asp
Impact on U.S. citizens (who are also a Canadian citizen or PR):
There might not be any impact on U.S. citizens who are also a Canadian citizen or PR (there is, for sure, no impact on U.S. citizens who otherwise do not have status in Canada; also no impact, for sure, on those traveling by means other than flying).
The changes taking place are rooted in the collateral impact of fully enforcing the eTA requirements. Americans are exempt from the eTA requirements. Thus, there might not be any impact on Americans. My guess is there will be no difference. However, for example, there may be a difference if the flight originates from a country other than the U.S. To be confident there will be no impact at all we will have to wait to see if any Americans who are flying to Canada, from somewhere other than the U.S., report being affected by the changes taking place.
Note, for example, technically U.S. citizens who are also a Canadian PR are required to present their Canadian PR card to board a flight to Canada. This has been the law for a long time. It has, however, not been enforced as such, just as there was no, or (at most) rather limited enforcement of the requirement to present a valid PR card by PRs from visa-exempt countries . . . until eTA and until eTA is being fully enforced (scheduled to happen as of September 30 this year).
More in-depth observations about the impact on U.S. citizens (who are also a Canadian citizen or PR):
I go into this aspect more in-depth because it may help to put the eTA changes into context, and may thus help to clarify the impact on others, including dual Canadian citizens, as well as the impact on Canadian PRs (which includes those who have applied for Canadian citizenship, their application still in process). This is probably more in-depth than what most are interested in, and should thus be skipped unless one is interested in understanding how regulations which technically do not affect citizens or PRs nonetheless will have a big impact on those citizens and PRs traveling by air to Canada from abroad.
Foremost, there is no impact on U.S. citizens (who are also a Canadian citizen or PR) traveling to Canada from the U.S. by car, ferry, train, or bus. Regulations and rules for Canadians and Americans traveling between the U.S. and Canada, by means other than flying, have long been a lot less strict than for others or for those flying. (No passport is necessary, for example, if the traveler has other identification meeting certain requirements).
Additionally, technically, the actual change in law (Regulation 7.1 in the IRPA Regulations, imposing the eTA requirements for flying to and entering Canada) has no direct impact on U.S. citizens. But technically the eTA regulation has no direct impact on Canadians either. (Note: "Canadians" includes both Canadian citizens and Canadian Permanent Residents, both of whom are defined, by IRPA, to NOT be a Foreign National. eTA only affects FNs.)
Who, in particular, is directly affected by the eTA regulations? The eTA regulations directly affect only Foreign Nationals (FNs) who carry a visa-exempt passport. It requires such FNs to obtain eTA before seeking to enter Canada, and this will be enforced both before the FN will be allowed to board a flight to Canada, and at the PoE upon arrival in Canada.
Again, the underlying, substantive change, is Regulation 7.1 in the IRPA Regulations (see http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/regulations/SOR-2002-227/page-2.html#h-5 at the Justice Laws Website). This is the regulation which imposes the eTA requirement, that is, the regulation which imposes the mandatory requirement of an electronic travel authorization for Foreign National visitors who are exempt from visa requirements, effective as of March 15, 2016 but which has been subject to a leniency period, per IRCC administration, until September 29, 2016. Also see Regulations 12.04, 12.05, and 12.06 governing the eTA application, period of validity, and cancellation. See http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/regulations/SOR-2002-227/page-4.html#docCont (The pertinent statutory provision, imposing the requirement to obtain eTA as required by regulation, is Section 11(1.01); see http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/I-2.5/page-3.html#docCont which, I believe, was adopted in 2012 but did not take effect until a later date, and which has no practical effect for travelers until the leniency period ends for the eTA regulation itself, which again is September 29.)
More in-depth observations about the impact on dual Canadian citizens and Canadian PRs:
Reminder I: for purposes of this forum, the impact on PRs is as important as the impact on dual Canadian citizens, relative to PRs who are prospective applicants for citizenship and those who have already applied and whose application is still in process.
Reminder II: these observations are more in-depth than what most will be interested in, and are largely offered for those who want a more complete understanding how and why the implementation of eTA is having an impact on dual Canadian citizens and Canadian PRs (again, including those who have applications for citizenship in process).
I identified and linked, above, the statutory and regulatory changes which underlie the, in effect, newly enforced requirements for dual Canadian citizens and Canadian PRs.
To be clear, the practical changes, taking effect as of September 30, are:
-- Canadian citizens will need to present a Canadian passport to board a flight to Canada, and this includes dual Canadian citizens who previously were allowed to board a flight to Canada by displaying a passport from a visa-exempt country.
-- Canadian PRs will need to present a valid PR card or a PR Travel Document to board a flight to Canada, and this includes those PRs who have in the past been able to board a flight to Canada by displaying a passport from a visa-exempt country.
There is no change in the law governing what Travel Documents a PR or Canadian citizen must possess and present in order to fly to Canada.
Reminder: Canadians do not need to present any particular document to obtain entry into Canada. Obviously, a Canadian passport is preferred for Canadian citizens. And a currently valid PR card is preferred for Canadian PRs. But both are entitled to enter Canada, so any documentation, or other means of establishing identity and status, requires border officials to allow the Canadian to enter Canada. For citizens, this is mandated by the Charter of Rights. For PRs, this is a statutory entitlement.
That has not changed.
And, again, Regulation 7.1 in the IRPA Regulations, imposing the eTA requirements for flying to and entering Canada, only affects Foreign Nationals and thus has no direct effect on Canadians.
The obvious question, then, is how is it that as of September 30 the requirements for boarding a flight to Canada will change for Canadians.
The short and practical answer is that observed by zardoz: there have long been loopholes in enforcement which have allowed Canadians to board flights without possessing and displaying proper Canadian Travel Documents. And now long-extant rules will be enforced, as of September 30.
The full and technical answer involves Section 148(1) in IRPA and Regulation 259 in the IRPA Regulations (and in turn, provisions referenced therein, such as Regulation 151 IRPA Regulations which governs the issuance of Travel Documents to FNs, and Section 31(3) IRPA which governs the issuance of a PR Travel Document).
See, respectively:
http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/I-2.5/page-25.html#h-79 (Section 148(1) IRPA)
http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/regulations/SOR-2002-227/page-52.html#h-142 (Regulation 259 in the IRPA Regulations)
Note, however, these provisions do not refer to Canadian citizens. Canadian citizens are not prescribed persons governed by IRPA. How the implementation of eTA nonetheless affects dual Canadian citizens is more straightforward, simpler, than how PRs are affected, but actually the explanation for the latter is easier to make.
Thus, for PRs the applicable provisions include, especially, Sections 31 IRPA (31(1) governing PR cards and 31(3) governing PR TDs), Section 148(1) IRPA (imposing requirements on transportation companies to restrict boarding to passengers possessing and displaying proper Travel Documents), and Regulation 259 IRPA Regulations, in particular subsection 259(a) (prescribing a PR TD as a proper Travel Document) and 259(f) (prescribing a PR card as a proper Travel Document).
Bottom-line: these statutory provisions and regulations have long mandated that the only proper Travel Documents for a Canadian PR are either a PR Travel Document or a valid PR card.
As most know, this has not been enforced against those PRs who carry and present a visa-exempt passport. As discussed in much depth in the PR Obligations conference, many interpreted this to mean PRs with a visa-exempt passport were not required to present a valid PR card or PR TD. That was an erroneous interpretation. And there were occasional reports, albeit very few and sporadic, that the rules for PRs was enforced on some occasions. Nonetheless, in practice, PRs could easily display a visa-exempt passport and thereby be allowed to board a flight to Canada.
The airline, in such instances, was essentially handling the passenger as a Foreign National, one who is governed by the exception referred to in Regulation 7(2), and thus has a proper ("prescribed") TD as identified in Regulation 259(c) (in turn referring to passports among other prescribed documents). Note: U.S. citizens are excluded from Regulation 52(1) (exceptions listed in 52(2) IRPA Regulations) and thus do not need a passport or special travel document to enter Canada. Other border control provisions, including in particular those not in IRPA or the IRPA regulations, prescribe alternative identification/documentation which can be used to establish identity and status for purposes of Americans entering Canada from the U.S. (and there are similar, but not entirely equivalent, provisions for going the other way . . . note, for example, that American PRs, that is Green Card holders, do not need a visa to enter Canada but the U.S. does not reciprocate for Canadian PRs).
Now, or as of September 30th anyway, a FN carrying a visa-exempt passport will no longer be allowed to board a flight to Canada by just displaying a visa-exempt passport. Such a traveler must first obtain an electronic travel authorization, "eTA."
Only FNs are eligible for eTA. If the system works properly, as it probably will most of the time, a Canadian (including Canadian citizens as well as Canadian PRs) who has a visa-exempt passport and who applies for eTA, will be denied eTA. Without eTA, a visa-exempt passport will not get the traveler on to the plane.
Thus, to get aboard a flight to Canada, Canadian PRs will now have to possess and present either a valid PR card or a PR Travel Document.
For dual Canadian citizens, I have not unraveled the applicable regs and rules to the same extent as those governing PRs, but my sense is that basically, again, their visa-exempt passport will no longer get them abroad a flight to Canada (no eTA, not allowed to board), and in order to show that they are otherwise not a prescribed person, one who needs to show (per Section 148(1) IRPA) one of the documents prescribed by Regulation 259 in the IRPA Regulations, they need to present their Canadian passport (or special Travel Document).
I know I took the long way around (as usual) to explain that, essentially, what the implementation of eTA has done, is that it precludes Canadians from using a visa-exempt passport to board a flight to Canada, and thus requires them to show a proper Travel Document as prescribed: a Canadian passport if the traveler is a Canadian citizen; a PR card or PR TD if the traveler is a Canadian PR. For those interested in understanding how this works, however, I hope I have illuminated things at least a little.
Exceptions: There are actually a lot of exceptions. The biggest exception is for U.S. citizens. The other exceptions only apply to a relatively small number of individuals in particular circumstances. For most of the exceptions, see IRPA Regulations 7(3), 190(2), 190(3).
