Canada Visitor Visas

If you’re a US citizen, you will not need to apply for a visitor visa or an electronic travel authorization (eTA) to visit Canada.

Instead, you will only need to carry proper documentation and identification in order to cross the border.

For many US citizens, you will have to produce a valid US passport as proof of your US citizenship.

Meanwhile, if you’re a member of the NEXUS program, you may use your membership card as proof of identification and citizenship. You will be able to do this regardless of the method of transport you use to enter Canada.

If you’re a member of the FAST program, you may use your cards as proof of identity when arriving by land and marine methods of transport only.

If you’re a lawful permanent resident of the US, you will not need to apply for a visitor visa or an eTA to visit Canada.

However, you will need to carry both of the following with you:

• A valid passport from your country of nationality (or an equivalent acceptable travel document)
• A valid proof of lawful permanent resident status in the US

Below is a list of acceptable documents you may use to prove your status in the US:

• Valid permanent resident card
• Foreign passport with an unexpired temporary I-551 stamp (also known as an Alien Documentation, Identification and Telecommunication [ADIT] stamp)
• Foreign passport with a temporary I-551 printed notation on a machine-readable immigrant visa upon endorsement with a U.S. Customs and Border Protection admission stamp
• Expired permanent resident card with Form I-797 (Notice of Action) for pending Form I-751 (Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence) or Form I-829 (Petition by Investor to Remove Conditions on Permanent Resident Status)
• Expired permanent resident card with Form I-797 (Notice of Action) for pending Form I-90 (Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card [Green Card])
• Valid re-entry permit (Form I-327)
• Form I-94 with an unexpired temporary I-551 stamp (ADIT stamp) and a passport-style photo

If you’re not a citizen or permanent resident of the US, you may then need to apply for permission to visit Canada.

One of these is the electronic travel authorization (eTA). An eTA is electronically linked to your passport and allows you to visit Canada for trips of up to six months at a time.

You will only need an eTA if all of the following apply to you:

• You live in the US (but do not have permanent resident status)
• You’re a citizen of a visa-exempt country
• You’re travelling by plane to visit Canada, or transiting through one of its airports

You will not need an eTA if you’re visiting or transiting through Canada by any method of transport that isn’t by plane. This includes by car, train, bus or boat.

To apply for an eTA, you will only need your passport, a valid email address, and a credit or debit card.

eTAs cost CAN$7 and usually only take a few minutes to process and approve.

If you’re not a citizen or permanent resident of the US, and you’re also a citizen of a visa-required country, you will need a visitor visa (also known as a temporary resident visa) to visit Canada.

A visitor visa is an official document placed in your passport. Like the eTA, it allows its holders to visit Canada for up to six months at a time.

If you’re a citizen of a visa-required country, you will need a visitor visa regardless of the method of transport you use to enter Canada.

You must meet certain requirements in order to be eligible for a visitor visa. For example, you must, among other things:

• Have no criminal- or immigration-related convictions
• Prove that you have enough money to support yourself for your visit
• Convince an immigration officer that you will leave Canada at the end of your visit

You may also need to take a medical exam to be eligible to visit Canada.

Visitor visas cost CAN$100 to obtain. These visas typically take a few months to process when applying from the US.

If you’re a citizen of a visa-required country and you’re transiting through one of Canada’s airports for a short period of time, you will need to apply for a transit visa.

A transit visa will allow you to travel through a Canadian airport (such as if you need to connect to another international flight) for a period of time up to 48 hours.

It may also be valid for up to one or two entries, depending on your plans.

Note that you will need to apply for a visitor visa instead of a transit visa if you’re from a visa-required country and any of the following apply to you:

• Your transit through Canada will be longer than 48 hours
• You’ll be visiting Canada (i.e. leaving the secure area of the airport at any time)
• You’ll be entering Canada by any form of transport other than plane

Transit visas are free to obtain. They also usually only take a few weeks or less to process.

If you’re legally deemed to be inadmissible to Canada from the US, you may instead apply for a temporary resident permit (TRP).

A TRP allows someone who is inadmissible to Canada to visit for a short period of time, as long as the reason for their visit outweighs the health and safety risks to Canadian society.

You may be inadmissible to Canada for a number of reasons, including (but not limited to) the following:

• Security reasons, such as violence, terrorism or espionage
• Human rights or international rights violations
• Criminal reasons, such as driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol
• Medical reasons, such as conditions that put excessive demand on health or social services
• Having an inadmissible family member

You will normally be issued with a TRP after applying for either an eTA or a visitor visa. If you’re applying for a visitor visa, you must include supporting documents to explain why you’re inadmissible and why it may be justified for you to enter Canada.

TRPs cost CAN$200 to obtain and may take up to 24 months to process.

The intending organ donors visa is a type of temporary resident visa (TRV). It is specifically aimed at those who need to travel to Canada with the sole purpose of donating an organ to a Canadian citizen or permanent resident.

To be eligible for this visa, you must fulfil all of the usual eligibility requirements for a normal TRV. In addition, you must:

• Prove that the organ you intend to donate is medically compatible between yourself and the recipient
• Prove that the medical costs and all costs associated with the organ donation are covered by the recipient’s health insurance or through specific provincial/territorial health funding
• Prove that there is no transaction, sale or unlawful exchange involved in the donation process

For this visa, you must also provide a range of supporting documentation that verifies the above eligibility criteria and satisfies Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) that the organ donation process is legitimate.

You can apply for an intending organ donors visa via the same method as applying for a TRV. This visa also costs CAN$100 to obtain, and may take between a few weeks and a few months to process.

If you’re visiting Canada from the US in order to conduct business, you will have to adhere to a number of rules and restrictions on what you can and can’t do.

As a business visitor, you will be able to carry out the following activities:

• Buy Canadian goods or services for a foreign business or government
• Take orders for goods or services
• Go to meetings, conferences, conventions or trade fairs
• Give after-sales service as part of a warranty or sales agreement
• Be trained by a Canadian parent company that you work for outside Canada
• Train employees of a Canadian branch of a foreign company
• Be trained by a Canadian company that has sold you equipment or services

If you’re a US citizen, you may also be able to undertake other research, marketing and general services, as per the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement.

In order to qualify as a business visitor, you must prove that you don’t plan to enter the Canadian labor market and that your main place of business and source of income and profits is outside Canada, amongst other things.

You will also need to bring either a valid visitor visa, eTA, proof of US citizenship, or official proof of status in the US with you to Canada.