What Canadian travel advisors should know about the U.S. travel ban

In a special bulletin, ACTA is providing its members with information and guidance following the signing by U.S. President Donald Trump of an Executive Order that will suspend entry to the United States for nationals of 19 countries, effective June 9, 2025, at 12:01 AM EDT.

The Executive Order implements two levels of restrictions:

Full suspension of 12 countries

Afghanistan, Burma (Myanmar), Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen

Impact:

• Complete ban on ALL visa types – both immigrant and non-immigrant

Partial suspension of 7 countries

Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, Venezuela

Impact:

• All immigrant visas banned
• Specific non-immigrant visas banned: B-1/B-2 (tourism/business), F (academic students), M (vocational students), J (exchange visitors)
• Other visa types allowed but with reduced validity periods

Ban effective June 9

The ban takes effect June 9, 2025, at 12:01 AM Eastern Daylight Time.

• Clients must be inside the US before this deadline to avoid restrictions
• Existing valid visas issued before June 9 will NOT be revoked
• Anyone outside the US without a valid visa on June 9 will be subject to the ban

Dual nationals

Dual nationals are exempt if travelling on a passport from a non-banned country.

Examples:

• Iranian-Canadian travelling on Canadian passport: Allowed
• Iranian-Canadian travelling on Iranian passport: Prohibited
• Haitian-Canadian travelling on Canadian passport: Allowed
• Cuban-Canadian travelling on Canadian passport: Allowed

The passport used for travel determines eligibility, not the person’s nationalities.

Who is not affected

The ban does not apply to:

• U.S. lawful permanent residents (green card holders)
• People already inside the U.S.
• Holders of valid visas issued before June 9, 2025
• Diplomatic visa holders (A-1, A-2, G visas, NATO visas)
• Athletes/teams traveling for major sporting events
• Certain family-based immigrant visas

Transit passengers

The ban applies even to transit through U.S. airports. Affected nationals cannot transit through the US to reach other destinations.

Cruise passengers

Cruises with U.S. ports will be impacted. Affected nationals may be denied boarding even if the cruise doesn’t originate in the U.S.

Pre-existing bookings

Review force majeure clauses and travel insurance policies. The ban may qualify as a covered reason for cancellation.

For more information, visit www.acta.ca.