The health and safety of employees and visitors is our priority. On this page, you will find the operating status by region, how to book your visit, and the services available.
Current status by region
Our Halifax, Ottawa, Winnipeg and Vancouver offices operate independently and offer limited services at this time. Remote reference and genealogy services remain available from all our locations. Contact us by using our
Ask Us a Question or
Ask Us a Genealogy Question forms, or by calling 1 866 578 7777 (option 8; toll-free in Canada and the United States).
Please DO NOT come in if you have COVID-19 symptoms or are awaiting test results, have been in close contact with someone who has been diagnosed with COVID-19 or is awaiting test results, have travelled abroad in the last 14 days, or have been asked to self-isolate by public health authorities.
Should we have to close any of our facilities temporarily, we will inform prospective visitors.
Ottawa: Closed to the public
The facility located at 395 Wellington Street in Ottawa is closed to the public until further notice.
Services available:
Halifax: Open to the public—No reservation required
The service point located in the Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21, 1055 Marginal Road in Halifax, is open to the public. No reservation is needed.
Services available:
- Reference services
- Orientation services
- Booking a meeting with a LAC reference specialist
- Digital kiosk to access LAC's databases and other subscription databases
- Please contact us by email at bac.halifax.lac@canada.ca or call 902-426-4031 if you have questions before your visit.
Days/times:
- Wednesday to Friday, 1 to 4 p.m., Atlantic Time
- No reservation is required
Safety
- Face covering/mask must be worn at all times
- Hand washing
- Social distancing must be respected at all times
- Frequent cleaning
Winnipeg: Open to the public – Book your visit
The facility located at 1700 Inkster Boulevard in Winnipeg is open to the public by reservation only.
Services available:
- In-person and remote reference and genealogy services
- Digital copy services—local collection only
- Orientation services
- Booking a meeting with a LAC reference specialist
- On-site consultations of local collections (order your documents in advance)
- Digital kiosk to access LAC's databases and other subscription databases
Times and how to reserve:
- Tuesday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Central Time
- Before visiting, please contact us by email at
bac.winnipeg.lac@canada.ca or telephone us at 204 984 1469 to make a reservation; you can prepare for your visit by completing your User Card Registration if you do not already have one
- Visitors without reservations will not be admitted
- There is no penalty for cancelling your reservation; however, we request that you give us as much notice as possible
Safety:
- A face covering or mask that meets current public health officials’ recommendations must be worn at all times, including at your reserved seat
- Handwashing with soap and water is mandatory before handling collection materials
- Physical distancing must be respected at all times
- Collection material will be quarantined after handling
- There will be frequent cleaning
- Clean lockers will be available to store personal items
Local collection:
The Winnipeg office holds archival records from federal government offices in northwestern Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and the Northwest Territories. Highlights from the collection include archived records from the following departments and/or their predecessors:
Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada and
Indigenous Services Canada (previously Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada, etc.), the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration, Parks Canada, Canadian National Railways, Correctional Services Canada, and the Canadian Grain Commission.
Vancouver: Research room open to the public – Book your visit
The research room located at 420 – 300 West Georgia Street in Vancouver is open to the public, by reservation only. Seating and services are limited. The public service point located on the 7th floor of the Vancouver Public Library, 350 West Georgia Street, remains closed to the public.
Services available:
- In-person and remote reference and genealogy services
- Digital copy services—local collection only
- Orientation services
- Booking a meeting with a LAC reference specialist
- On-site consultations of local collections
- Digital kiosk to access LAC's databases and other subscription databases
Days/times and how to reserve:
- Tuesday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Pacific Time
- To book your visit, please contact us by email at
bac.vancouver.lac@canada.ca or call 604 -666-9699 to make a reservation; you can prepare for your visit by completing your
User Card Registration if you do not already have a user card
- Visitors without reservations will not be admitted
- There is no penalty for cancelling your reservation; however, we request that you give us as much notice as possible
Safety:
- A
face covering or mask that meets current public health officials recommendations must be worn at all times, including at your seat
- Handwashing with soap and water is mandatory before handling collection materials
- Physical distancing must be respected at all times
- Collection material will be quarantined after handling
- There will be frequent cleaning
- Clean lockers will be available to store personal items
LAC's Vancouver office holds archival records created by the departments now known as
Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada or the
new Indigenous Services Canada and its predecessor departments in British Columbia and Yukon.
- Starting April 2, we will not accept new copy service requests until further notice.
- We will continue to process previously submitted requests before this date. However, delays beyond our usual service standards should be expected since we are applying significant internal safety measures and new protocols, including physical distancing and mandatory isolation of collection items.
Resumption of
ATIP request processing
- Due to health and safety requirements related to COVID-19, the LAC Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) team is operating at limited capacity; processing delays should be expected.
- We have also resumed the processing of requests for documents in support of claims related to the Federal Indian Day Schools Class Action.
- All ATIP requests received on or after March 14, 2020, will be processed. Please do not resubmit your request as this may cause it to be delayed further. If there is a change in the urgency of your request, or should you have questions or concerns, please contact us by email at
bac.daiprp-atipd.lac@canada.ca. Please quote your request number in your correspondence.