APPLYING FOR A VISITOR VISA TO ENTER CANADA

A person applying for visitor visa must meet certain basic requirements to enter Canada. Among the requirements, the person must be in possession of a valid travel document like a passport; be in good health and have no criminal or immigration-related convictions. The person must also convince an immigration officer that he has tiessuch as a job, home, financial assets or family- that will take him back to his home country and that he will leave Canada at the end of the visit. He should also have enough money for his stay in Canada, the amount depending on how long he will stay and if he will stay in a hotel, or with friends or relatives and also depending on whether or not the applicant has a relative or friend in Canada to support him while in Canada.

Most visitors can stay in Canada for up to 6 months. If your passport was stamped when you entered Canada, you need to leave by the date stamped in your passport. If you received a visitor record, you need to leave Canad by the expiry date listed on the visitor recordIf your passport wasn’t stamped and you used a primary inspection kiosk, you can only stay in Canada for up to six monthsfrom the day you entered the country, or until your passport expires, whichever comes first.

Most travellers need a visa or an electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) to fly to, or transit through, a Canadian airport. What you need depends on the travel document you are travelling with; the country that issued your travel document; your nationality and how you will travel to Canada. You may be prevented from boarding your flight to Canada if you do not have the proper documentation such as an eTA or visa.

Visa-exempt countries need an electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) to board their flight to Canada. They also need an eTA to transit through Canada by air. However, if they are travelling by land or sea, these travellers do not need an eTA to enter Canada. For instance, an American citizen driving from US to Canada or coming to Canada by bus, train, or boat,does not need an eTA..

Travellers from visa-required countries need a visitor visa to visit Canada by any method of travel, be it plane, car, bus, train or boat. They will need a visa even if transiting and will stay in Canada more than 48 hours while transiting and also if they are crossing the border of Canada by bus, car, train or boat. They will need a transit visa if their international flight stops at a Canadian airport on its way to another country and they will be connecting between two international flights at a Canadian airport and will transit through Canada in 48 hours or less, unless they have a valid visitor visa.

Certain categories of people are exempted from eTA and visa requirements. This list includes, but not limited to, foreign nationals with official Canadian documents; travel and official representatives such as flight crew and diplomats; and foreign nationals in certain categories such as the passengers on a flight that makes an unscheduled stop in Canada.

Workers and students must also meet Canada’s entry requirements. A work permit or study permit is not a visitor permit. If you apply for a study permit or work permit for the first time, you will automatically get a visitor visa when the application is approved. This enables you to enter, leave and re-enter Canada. If you are from a visa-required country, make sure that your visitor visa is still variedif youchoose to leave Canada and re-enter.If you are eligible to work or study without a permit, you are considered a visitor to Canada and you must necessarily meet the entry requirements for travellers from your country of citizenship.

A visitor in Canada may apply for a visitor record to stay longer. This application for an extension of your stay must be submitted at least 30 days before expiration of your authorized stay in Canada.A visitor record document may also be issued by a border services officer at the port of entry to extend or limit your stay in Canada. If you want to stay in Canada for more than six months, you can tell the officer at the port of entry to give you a visitor record.A visitor visa is stuck in your passport while a visitor record is a document that is issued to you to extend or restrict your stay in Canada.

In view of the ongoing changes to the requirements for visa applications and the increasing complexity of this area of immigration law, it is advisable to contact a professional for clarification whenever necessary to avoid unnecessary delays and refusals.

James A. Kwaateng, is an Immigration Law practitioner who has his offices located at 168A Oakdale Road, Suite 4, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. For a thorough discussion of your immigration and related social and legal issues, you may contact him at telephone number (416) 743-2758 for an appointment