Canada has a lot to offer for tourism and leisure. If you are coming from abroad and planning to visit Canada for tourism, to reconnect with friends or a family member, you might need either an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) or a Visitor Visa.
Here are the answers to frequently asked questions about visiting Canada:
A Visitor Visa is also referred to as a Temporary Resident Visa, and it consists of a document used for tourists to enter Canada on a temporary basis.
After you successfully submit your application and all required documents, the Canada Visitor Visa will be added to your passport.
For entering Canada as a visitor, you may need a Canada visitor visa or an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA). The entry document you need depends on:
The easiest way to discover the document required to be stamped on your passport is by consulting your nationality.
| Country and condition | Visitor Visa or eTA requirement |
Andorra Australia Austria Bahamas Barbados Belgium Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria Chile Croatia Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Estonia Finland France Germany Greece Hungary Iceland Ireland Italy Japan Republic of Korea Latvia Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Malta Mexico Monaco Netherlands New Zealand Norway Papua New Guinea Poland Portugal Samoa San Marino Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Spain Sweden Switzerland United Arab Emirates |
Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) |
Israel (must have a national Israeli passport) Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China (must have a passport issued by Hong Kong SAR) Romania (electronic passport holders only) Taiwan (must have an ordinary passport issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Taiwan that includes the personal identification number) Vatican City State, must have a passport or travel document issued by the Vatican. | Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) |
British citizen British National (Overseas) British overseas citizen (re-admissible to the United Kingdom) British overseas territory citizen with citizenship through birth, descent, naturalization or registration in one of the British Overseas Territories of: Anguilla Bermuda British Virgin Islands Cayman Islands Falkland Islands (Malvinas) Gibraltar Montserrat Pitcairn Island Saint Helena Turks and Caicos Islands British Subject with a right of abode in the United Kingdom | Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) |
Afghanistan Albania Algeria Angola Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Armenia Azerbaijan Bahrain Bangladesh Belarus Belize Benin Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia-Herzegovina Botswana Brazil (note: some Brazilian citizens may be eligible for an eTA if they meet certain requirements) Burkina Faso Burma (Myanmar) Burundi Cambodia Cameroon, Republic of Cape Verde Central African Republic Chad China, People’s Republic of Colombia Comoros Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Republic of Costa Rica, Republic of Cuba Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic East Timor Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Ethiopia Fiji Gabon Gambia Georgia Ghana Grenada Guatemala Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana Haiti Honduras India Indonesia Iran Iraq Israel (must have a valid Israeli “Travel Document in lieu of National Passport”) Ivory Coast Jamaica Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Korea, North Kosovo Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libya Macao Special Administrative Region Macedonia Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Islands Mali Marshall Islands Mauritania Mauritius Micronesia, Fed. States Moldova Mongolia Montenegro Morocco Mozambique Namibia Nauru Nepal Nicaragua Niger Nigeria Oman Pakistan Palau Palestinian Authority Panama Paraguay Peru Philippines Qatar Romania (holder of a non-electronic passport, such as a temporary passport) Russia Rwanda Sao Tome e Principe Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Somalia South Africa South Sudan Sri Lanka St. Kitts and Nevis St. Lucia St. Vincent and the Grenadines (St. Vincent) Sudan Surinam Swaziland Syria Taiwan (must have a passport other than ordinary passports issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Taiwan that include their personal identification number) Tajikistan Tanzania Thailand Togo Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan Tuvalu Uganda Ukraine Uruguay Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela Vietnam Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe | Visitor Visa |
There are a few requirements to qualify for a Canada Visitor Visa. Some of them are:
The process for acquiring a Canada Visitor Visa can be made online or at a Visa Application Center (VAC). It involves filling several forms and the complexity might depend on additional requirements made by Canadian Immigration offices.
In summary, there are 5 main steps for applying for a Canada Visitor Visa:
Please be careful when consulting information and sending documents. Make sure to only follow instructions provided by a recognized immigration law firm or the official channels of the Canadian government.
Most visitors can stay for up to 6 months in Canada. The border services officer might put the date you need to leave by in your passport.
