BUFFALO, N.Y. (WBEN) - Congressman Brian Higgins is asking President Donald Trump to loosen the United States' restrictions on visitation to and from Canada.
"The Canadian government has relaxed restrictions for travel of family members of Canadian citizens on two separate occasions already; first expanding the exemption for spouses, common law partners, parents and dependent children and then again recently creating a process for foreign nationals in exclusive dating relationships, grandchildren, grandparents, siblings, and non-dependent children to reunite with their Canadian loved ones," Higgins said in a letter to the president. "The United States, however ,has yet to adopt similar exemptions for land border crossings."
The Department of Homeland Security extended its restrictions on the border between the two countries last month.
"I am extremely sensitive to the overarching need to stop the spread of COVID-19, and the role that travel restrictions play in that critical mission," Higgins wrote. "At the same time, our constituents along the northern border in New York, in those communities that have a low rate of infection and a low number of cases, have been suffering from this seemingly endless ban on their ability to engage in legitimate cross-border travel according to common sense safety metrics. Given the enormity of the northern border and the diversity of northern border regions, I believe that a more nuanced approach, taking regional COVID-19 transmission risks into account, is more appropriate than a uniform border-wide policy."
READ: Letter from Rep. Higgins to President Trump
Non-essential travel to Canada was extended through October 21, according to Acting DHS Secretary Chad Wolf.
