Canada updates temporary measures for Palestinians

What changed

On July 31, 2026, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced an extension and update of the temporary measures introduced for Palestinians affected by the crisis in Gaza. The earlier special measures — which supported Palestinians in Canada and foreign national family members of Canadian citizens and permanent residents — had been set to expire that same day, July 31, 2026. IRCC has now extended these measures to December 30, 2027, with two components: first, people already in Canada who received an open work permit under the earlier temporary measures may now apply to extend that permit, with standard processing fees applying to the extension (those on visitor or study permits may apply to extend through IRCC's existing channels); second, eligible Palestinians who arrive in Canada on or before September 30, 2027, and who did not apply under the previous measures, may now apply from within Canada for fee-exempt study permits, open work permits, temporary resident permits, or extensions of their temporary resident status.

IRCC noted that, as of May 31, 2026, there were 2,383 valid work permits and 236 valid study permits held by Palestinian passport holders in Canada. The department explained that many eligible Palestinians have been unable to leave Gaza to provide biometrics and complete applications due to circumstances outside Canada's control — part of why the arrival window was extended rather than simply closed.

Why it matters

For Palestinian nationals already in Canada under the earlier special measures, this update removes immediate deadline pressure: instead of an open work permit or temporary status lapsing on July 31, 2026, there is now a clear path to extend status through the end of 2027. For people who were unable to leave Gaza in time to apply under the original 2023 measures — often for reasons entirely outside their control, such as border closures or the inability to provide biometrics — the extended arrival window through September 30, 2027, means they are not permanently shut out simply because of when they were able to leave.

This kind of rolling extension is also a signal of how IRCC is managing an active humanitarian file: the government continues to treat the situation in Gaza as volatile enough to justify special, temporary immigration treatment, while tightening the endpoints — a defined expiry and a defined arrival cut-off — rather than leaving the measure open-ended indefinitely.

What this means for eligible applicants

If you are currently in Canada on an open work permit obtained under the earlier temporary measures, you should not assume it will simply lapse — you can apply for an extension, though the standard processing fee now applies, which is a change from the fee-exempt treatment given to first-time applicants under the original measures. If you hold a visitor or study permit granted under the earlier measures, extensions run through IRCC's regular application channels rather than a separate special process.

If you have not yet applied and believe you are eligible — for example, because you were unable to leave Gaza earlier to provide biometrics or complete an application — arriving in Canada on or before September 30, 2027, preserves your ability to apply from within Canada for a fee-exempt study permit, open work permit, temporary resident permit, or status extension. Because eligibility, documentation requirements, and how these categories interact with any other immigration application you may already have in progress can be highly fact-specific, anyone in this situation should confirm their own eligibility and application strategy directly rather than relying on the general description above.