Just when you thought it was safe to go back to the airport… Canadians managed to get through a winter marred by travel snafus, including winter storms, overcrowded airports and cancelled flights. But now comes a potential spring double whammy. Some 155,000 federal works are on strike today (April 20). Talks are back on between the Public Service Alliance of Canada and the Trudeau government, but for now Canada Revenue Agency workers are not at their desks, and Canadian passport offices are closed. The CBC reports that passport applications and renewals “are on hold and limited to those in humanitarian Read more
passports
Canada’s passport application backlog has been ‘completely eliminated,’ one of the top ministers in the Trudeau government says. CTV News reports tat Families, Children and Social Development Minister Karina Gould this week said that service times for passport applications are back to pre-pandemic standards, after the backlog ballooned last summer. Canadians looking to renew their passports last summer found long wait lines and lengthy delays, an issue that passport officials said was due to a huge spike in demand for travel as COVID travel restrictions began to ease. The CBC reports that Canadians waiting anxiously for their passports to arrive before Read more
The Trudeau government says it’s making progress on passport and airport delays, but it admits there’s a lot of work to do. Federal government ministers put out a statement today saying that it’s hired more than 700 new staff for passport offices and hired 1,800 more security screening officers at airports. It also said it’s decreasing flight delays,cancellations and baggage woes, and that the average wait times at the passport call centre have significantly decreased from a peak of 108 minutes earlier this spring to 24 minutes as of August 21. “With this surge in passport requests and significant delays Read more
The Trudeau government says it’s making it easier for Canadians to get their passports renewed, or to acquire new ones. Lineups have been horrific in several major Canadian cities this summer as the demand for travel soars. But Ottawa says the government is taking solid action, including the use of mpre than 300 Service Canada Centres. “The recent increase in passport demand combined with the longer processing times have resulted in a growing number of Canadians requiring their passport applications be transferred to local passport offices for processing in order to get them in time to travel,” officials said. “This Read more
The Trudeau government says the passport situation is improving, but there’s still work to do. “Canadians deserve access to timely, efficient, and transparent passport delivery services,” said Karina Gould, federal minister for Families, Children and Social Development. “We’re continuing to tackle big challenges in the passport program, and as the summer progresses, thanks to the hard work of Service Canada staff, we continue to see improvements in service delivery. “We are starting to put a dent in the backlog,” Gould said. “Last week, the number of passports issued was higher than at any point since before the pandemic, at 54,312. Read more
