Measures take effect Monday at 11:59 p.m. ET, to last until Aug. 29

CBC News ·  Jul 19, 2026

The federal government on Sunday said it would deny ⁠entry ⁠to ‌foreign nationals who had been to the ⁠Democratic Republic of the Congo ‌within the past 21 days as part of new, temporary border measures ‌to combat the spread of Ebola.

The measures take effect on ⁠Monday ⁠at 11:59 ⁠p.m. ET and will last until Aug. 29, ⁠the Public Health Agency of ⁠Canada (PHAC) said in a statement.

"Limiting entry of foreign nationals who have been in the the DRC in the previous 21 days may reduce public health risks for Canadians, and is intended to increase the effectiveness and sustainability of border measures that can safely process travelers arriving in Canada, including our returning humanitarian workers," the statement says.

The government's travel health notice risk level for Congo is currently orange (or Level 3 out of 4), which means to avoid non-essential travel. PHAC says the risk from Ebola for Canadians remains low and no travel-related cases in Canada have been reported.

The measures enacted so far "are out of an abundance of caution," the statement reads.

UN warns of stigma attached to travel bans

The ban contravenes advice from the World Health Organization (WHO), which advises against travel or trade restrictions with Congo, where officials are currently struggling to contain the outbreak. The UN health agency says travel restrictions create stigma and ⁠can make epidemics ⁠harder to control.

"People from affected regions ‌and African communities have faced unfair suspicion," the WHO said in a statement last month. "The spread of Ebola is not determined by nationality or ethnicity."

The federal government clamped down on travel and immigration from Congo, Uganda and South Sudan in late May, suspending immigration documents from citizens of those countries.

Canadian citizens, permanent residents and those registered under the Indian Act who have been in those countries within the last 21 days can still travel to Canada, but will receive a health assessment on arrival and must quarantine for 21 days.

Ebola is mostly spread through direct contact with the ⁠bodily fluids of someone infected with the disease. The number of confirmed cases of Ebola in Congo has reached 2,011, including 754 deaths, according to government data released earlier this month. The WHO says more than 100 health-care workers have been infected since the beginning of the outbreak.

Last week, the U.S. introduced measures preventing Americans who had been ⁠in Congo in the previous 21 days from entering the U.S. via commercial aviation. Seven U.S. aid workers who had been working in Congo to stop the outbreak are currently quarantining in a facility in ⁠Kenya.

Source: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/canada-congo-ebola-9.7275782