NEWS: New Government of Canada Quarantine Requirements Effective March 21, 2021

News from Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada

I am writing to inform you that as of this afternoon the Government has announced new quarantine requirements effective March 21, 2021, for certain temporary foreign workers with work visas in the agriculture, agri-food, and fish and seafood sectors, in the following occupations:

0821 – Managers in agriculture

0822 – Managers in horticulture

8252 – Agricultural service contractors, farm supervisors and specialized livestock workers

8255 – Contractors and supervisors, landscaping, grounds maintenance and horticulture services

8431 – General farm workers

8432 – Nursery and greenhouse workers

8611 – Harvesting labourers

6331 – Butchers, meat cutters and fishmongers – retail And wholesale

9461 – Process control and machine operators, food, beverage and associated products processing

9462 – Industrial butchers and meat cutters, poultry preparers and related workers

9463 – Fish and seafood plant workers

9617 – Labourers in food, beverage and associated products processing

9618 – Labourers In fish and seafood processing

Information on the announcement is now available on the Government of Canada website at:

Government announces comprehensive plan to better protect foreign workers in order to secure Canada’s food supply chain

We are continuing to work with the Public Health Agency of Canada to address the operational challenges for many employers and temporary foreign workers with respect to the COVID-19 At Home Specimen Collection kit (test kit) test to be taken at day 10 during the mandatory 14-day quarantine period.  In the meantime, a video with step-by-step instructions is currently available at: Switch Health.  The video is available in English and French.  Subtitles are available in English, French, Spanish, Chinese (Traditional), Chinese (Simplified), Arabic, Portuguese, Hebrew and Russian by pressing the cc button on the video window.

Please be assured that the Government is working to address these issues on an urgent basis.

In addition, we are in the process of updating information on the Government websites with respect to border measures to ensure employers and temporary foreign workers have access to accurate and current information with respect to these measures.  We will inform you when this information is available and the relevant links.

We are continuing to work with other federal departments, provincial governments and stakeholders to ensure the ongoing safety of temporary foreign workers and communities.

We will continue to keep you apprised of new information as it becomes available.

We would like to thank you for your ongoing collaboration and support.

Thank you,

Philippe Massé
Director General
Temporary Foreign Worker Program