If Your Bird Is Refused Entry to Canada: What the Law Actually Requires

If your bird is refused entry to Canada, the law’s default remedy is removal from the country, not destruction. Destruction is reserved for two narrower situations, both tied to the bird’s health, not to paperwork. This article sets out exactly which rule applies to your situation, in the order the law actually applies it.

Two different moments get confused, and the consequences are not the same

Almost everything frightening you’ll read online about this topic blurs two situations that the law treats completely differently.

• A permit is refused or delayed while your bird is still outside Canada. Nothing has happened to your bird. This is a planning problem, not an enforcement one.
• A bird is refused at the Canadian border, in transit or on arrival. This is where the Health of Animals Act and its Regulations actually apply, and where the rest of this article is focused.

If you’re still working out whether your bird even needs a permit before you travel, our plain-English CFIA rules guide and our Canada-US border walkthrough cover that ground. This page picks up from the moment something has already gone wrong.

If the permit is delayed or refused while your bird is still abroad

This is the less frightening scenario, and it’s also the more common one. Your bird has not been examined, refused, or ordered removed from anywhere — because it hasn’t arrived. Your options here are ordinary logistics: correct the application and resubmit, wait out the processing time, reconsider the destination or route, or leave the bird somewhere stable while you sort the rest out. Our complete guide to moving abroad with a pet bird walks through the paperwork itself, and our boarding-during-relocation guide covers the staged-move and rehoming questions in more depth.

If your bird is refused at the Canadian border: what the law actually requires

Once a bird is physically at the border, three separate legal triggers can apply, and they lead to different outcomes. Only two of them ever mention destruction, and neither treats it as the normal result.

Path one: a requirement wasn’t met, or the bird was imported in contravention of the rules

Under section 18(1) of the Health of Animals Act, if an inspector or officer has reasonable grounds to believe an animal was imported in contravention of the Act or its Regulations, or that a requirement imposed under the Regulations has not been met, they may order the owner, importer, or person in possession of the animal “to remove it from Canada or, if removal is not possible, to dispose of it.” Removal is the primary remedy here. Disposal is a fallback that only applies when removal genuinely cannot happen — it is not a choice the inspector picks over removal. The notice is delivered personally or by registered mail to a Canadian address, under section 18(2).

This is consistent with Part IV of the Import Reference Document, which is incorporated by reference into the Health of Animals Regulations: where an animal doesn’t qualify for import, the direction is that the importer will be ordered to remove it from Canada under section 18, within a specified period.

Path two: an inspector believes the bird is not in good health

Section 13 of the Import Reference Document gives an inspector a separate power: if they have reason to believe a bird is not in good health, they may refuse it admission, or — if it has already been admitted — order it removed from Canada or destroyed. This trigger is the inspector’s professional judgment about the bird’s condition at that moment, not a lab result. It sits apart from path one because it’s about health, not paperwork.

Path three: the bird fails to prove negative to a required disease test

Section 62 of the Health of Animals Regulations covers a bird that has actually been tested: “the Minister may order the owner or the person having the possession, care or control of an animal imported by or under these Regulations to remove the animal from Canada or to destroy the animal if the animal fails to prove negative to any test for a disease required by or under these Regulations.” Here the trigger is a confirmed test result, not belief.

The reconciliation, in one sentence

A paperwork problem leads to removal, with disposal only where removal is genuinely impossible; a health concern — whether it’s the inspector’s reasonable belief or a demonstrated test result — is where removal and destruction sit side by side as equal options.

Trigger	Statutory basis	What the law authorises	Does it name destruction?
A requirement wasn’t met, or the bird was imported in contravention of the rules	Health of Animals Act, s.18(1)	Order to remove from Canada; disposal only if removal is not possible	Only as a fallback, not an option chosen over removal
Inspector believes the bird is not in good health	Import Reference Document, section 13	Refuse admission, or order removal or destruction if already admitted	Yes, alongside removal
Bird fails a required disease test	Health of Animals Regulations, s.62	Minister may order removal or destruction	Yes, alongside removal

The 90-day clock, and how it can be paused

If the bird is not removed from Canada or disposed of within the period a s.18 notice specifies — or within 90 days if the notice specifies no period — section 18(3) of the Health of Animals Act says it “is forfeited to Her Majesty in right of Canada and may be disposed of as the Minister may direct.” That’s the deadline that actually matters if you’re holding a removal notice with no date on it: 90 days, not indefinitely.

Section 18(4) gives an inspector or officer discretion to suspend that forfeiture clock for a period they specify, if they’re satisfied that harm to human or animal health is unlikely and that the bird won’t be sold during that time, among other conditions. This is a power the inspector exercises, not something you’re automatically entitled to — which is exactly why staying in contact with the inspector handling your case, rather than letting the notice sit unanswered, is the practical move. Speak to them directly using the CFIA number at the bottom of this page.

What this means for your bird, honestly

If your bird has been refused entry into Canada, the remedy under section 18(1) is removal from Canada. Boarding your bird in the Greater Toronto Area cannot resolve that situation — your bird is required to leave the country, not to be housed inside it, and no amount of local boarding changes that requirement.

Where boarding is a genuine answer is the other scenario: a permit still processing, or delayed, while your bird is still outside Canada, or an owner who has to travel before that route is fully resolved. If that’s your situation, a stable place for your bird to stay for the weeks or months a permit application can take is exactly what boarding is for — get a quote here. Bird Sitting Toronto boards and rehomes birds; it does not file permits, act as a customs broker, or represent you to any agency, and nothing here should be read as legal or immigration advice.

Frequently asked questions

Does a refused bird automatically get destroyed?

No. Section 18(1) of the Health of Animals Act directs removal from Canada as the primary remedy for a paperwork or compliance problem, with disposal only as a fallback when removal genuinely isn’t possible. Destruction sits alongside removal only in the two health-related paths — an inspector’s belief the bird isn’t well, or a failed disease test — not for a paperwork issue on its own.

What’s the difference between a permit refused abroad and a bird refused at the border?

A permit refused while your bird is still outside Canada is a planning problem — nothing has happened to the bird yet, and you can fix the application, wait, or change your plans. A bird refused at the Canadian border falls under the Health of Animals Act, and the specific rule that applies depends on why it was refused.

How long do I have before my bird could be forfeited to the Crown?

If a section 18 notice doesn’t specify a deadline, section 18(3) sets the default at 90 days from when the notice was delivered or sent. If the notice does specify a period, that period governs instead.

Can I get more time?

Section 18(4) allows an inspector or officer to suspend the forfeiture clock if they’re satisfied the bird poses unlikely harm and won’t be sold in that period, among other conditions. This is discretionary — it’s the inspector’s decision, not something you can claim automatically — so speak directly to the inspector on your file using the CFIA number at the bottom of this page.

Will my bird be quarantined instead of removed?

Quarantine and removal are different questions answered by different provisions, and this article doesn’t cover quarantine conditions or duration. Unconfirmed: we could not verify this against an official source — specifically, whether quarantine can be ordered as an alternative to removal in a specific refusal case, and under what conditions. Please confirm with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency at 1-800-442-2342 before you rely on it for your own bird.

What if my bird fails a health check at the border?

That falls under section 13 of the Import Reference Document, which lets an inspector refuse admission, or order removal or destruction if the bird was already admitted, based on their reasonable belief about the bird’s health. This is separate from, and can lead to a different outcome than, a paperwork-based refusal.

Can Bird Sitting Toronto help me appeal a refusal or file paperwork with CFIA?

No. BST offers boarding and, where a bird genuinely can’t come with you, rehoming help. We don’t file permits, complete applications, liaise with CFIA or CBSA, or give immigration advice. For anything involving your specific case, speak to the agency directly using the contact details at the bottom of this page.

What should I do right now if my bird has been refused entry?

Read the notice carefully for the deadline it specifies, and if none is stated, treat 90 days as your outer limit under section 18(3). Contact the inspector or officer named on the notice as soon as possible — engaging early is what makes section 18(4)’s discretionary suspension realistic. This page and its links describe what the law authorises; it can’t tell you what’s true of your specific notice, so that conversation with CFIA is the next step.

Related guides in this series

• Importing a Pet Bird to Canada: The Complete CFIA Guide (2026)
• Moving Abroad and You Can’t Take Your Bird: Board, Rehome, or Wait
• Long-Term Bird Boarding While You Relocate: 30, 60 and 90+ Days
• Taking Your Bird from Canada to the United States: Driving vs Flying
• The CFIA Import Permit for a Pet Bird: How to Apply and What to Expect
• Two Unsettled Questions About Taking a Parrot to the US (and How to Get an Answer in Writing)

Who to call before you travel

Confirm every requirement below with the agency itself. These are the people who
can actually authorise your bird’s movement — we cannot.

Every number below was checked against the agency’s own website on
27 July 2026. Government phone numbers and web pages still change without notice.
If one does not connect, find the agency through its own official site rather than trusting
what is printed here.

• Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) — import and export of live
  birds, health certificates, permits: 1-800-442-2342 from
  Canada and the US, or 1-613-773-2342 local and
  international, 8 am to 7 pm EST Monday to Friday except holidays. CFIA names
  services related to travelling with pets as something its area offices handle —
  for the GTA that is the Mississauga animal health office,
  289-247-4100, 8 am to 4 pm
  · inspection.canada.ca
• Environment and Climate Change Canada — CITES permitting — export and
  import permits for CITES-listed species, and what documents exist for repeat crossings:
  1-855-869-8670
  · cites@ec.gc.ca
• Canada Border Services Agency — what happens at the border itself,
  declarations and inspection fees: 1-800-461-9999, Monday to
  Friday 8 am to 4 pm local time. Press 0 to reach an agent; CBSA’s published
  service standard is to answer within 20 minutes
• USDA APHIS — the US pet-travel hub, with separate paths for import,
  export and interstate movement, and the list of which birds count as pets at all:
  aphis.usda.gov/pet-travel
• US Fish & Wildlife Service — CITES and Wild Bird Conservation Act
  permits, applied for through the ePermits portal at
  fws.gov/permits. The agency
  contact centre is 1-800-344-9453
  · info@fws.gov

What we can and cannot help with

We cannot help with paperwork. Bird Sitting Toronto is a bird
boarding and care business. We are not a customs broker, an immigration consultant, a
veterinary practice or a legal adviser. We do not file permits, complete applications or
deal with any agency on your behalf, and we cannot guarantee any outcome at any border.
Everything on this page is information only.

There are two things we can do. If your bird cannot travel with you
— because the paperwork is still in progress, the airline will not carry it, or the
timing simply does not work — we can board
your bird in the GTA for as long as you need, including by the month. And if it
becomes clear the bird genuinely cannot come with you, we can help you
rehome it to a good home rather
than leaving you to sort that out alone.

We publish this guide because our boarding clients ask us about it constantly, and
because the answer is genuinely hard to assemble from the primary sources.