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Calgary misses out on hosting international conference due to visa processing delays
Organizers with the International Health Economics Association (IHEA) have reportedly cancelled plans to have Calgary host their next global congress over worries Ottawa couldn't process hundreds of attendees' visas in time for the July 2025 event, as reported by CBC News.
It was to be hosted at the University of Calgary campus.
Instead, they moved their biennial conference to Indonesia because they say the system there is quicker and easier, providing visas upon arrival.
One of the Calgary organizers, University of Calgary economics professor Aidan Hollis, says he and others have worked on this event for more than a year—in collaboration with the University of Calgary, the Institute of Health Economics and Tourism Calgary—before finding out earlier this month it was being moved.
"It's certainly frustrating. I think the university has lots to offer (and it) would have been great for our students," said Hollis.
Most travellers need a visitor visa to travel to Canada. They may also need one if transiting through a Canadian airport on your way to their final destination.
