The Canadian government warned its members on Tuesday LGBT+ community who intend to go to the US because of the risks they may face in some states.

Specifically, Ottawa recommends that LGBTI+ people “check the local legislation” of the state where they wish to travel, citing “laws and policies that may affect them”.

The warning was posted on the website of the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs. Typically these types of recommendations are made for countries known to violate the rights of the LGBTI+ community, such as Russia, Egypt and Uganda.

When asked about the warning, Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland emphasized that the decision is not political.

“We have government officials whose job it is to watch carefully what’s going on in the world and check whether there are particular risks for certain groups of Canadians,” he explained.

Speaking to reporters, Freeland added that “every Canadian government (…) must put the interest and safety of every Canadian and every group of Canadians at the center of everything it does. That’s what we’re doing now.”

For its part, the State Department responded that the US is committed to “advancing tolerance, inclusion, justice and dignity” while supporting the rights of the LGBTQI+ community.

In Canada, a country of about 40 million people, the LGBTI+ community numbers about one million people, according to the national statistics office.

The US is the number one travel destination for Canadians, with 2.8 million visits recorded in June alone.

Ottawa’s warning comes at a time when anti-LGBTQI+ rhetoric is intensifying in the US: conservative MPs have proposed several laws affecting them, while boycotts of shops or companies that support their rights are taking place.

In addition, in June the US Supreme Court allowed for the first time some businesses to refuse to serve customers belonging to the LGBTI+ community for religious reasons.