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Visiting Canada
Information from the Canadian Government Website for
Citizenship and Immigration Canada
This information is not a legal document and
is provided for convenience only. For official information please
contact the nearest Canadian
Embassy or Canadian Immigration Processing Mission Abroad.
OVERVIEW
Visitors come to Canada for a temporary stay.
They include tourists, people visiting family in Canada, business
travelers, students, and temporary workers. Visitors bring important
economic, social and cultural benefits to Canada, contribute
to global trade and cooperation, and promote international understanding.
In 1998, nearly 41 million foreign travelers
visited Canada (Statistics Canada). Almost 90% of these visitors
were citizens or residents of the United States.
PLANNING TO VISIT CANADA?
Most visitors need a valid passport, and many
require visitor's visas. Different requirements exist for citizens
or permanent residents of the United States, St. Pierre and Miquelon
and Greenland.
Visitors to Canada must satisfy an immigration
officer that:
- they intend to return to their home country
and will not try to stay in Canada;
- they are in good health (some visitors may
be asked to undergo a medical examination at their own expense);
- they do not have a criminal record or are
a security risk;
- they have sufficient funds to cover travel
costs and support themselves in Canada;
If you do not meet these criteria, you may
be denied admission to Canada.
Usually visitors may stay for six months.
If they wish to stay longer, they must apply for a visitor extension.
Generally visitors are not allowed to work or study while in
Canada without authorization.
Visitors to Canada are not eligible for provincial
health coverage and are advised to obtain medical insurance for
the period of their stay.
VISITORS VISAS
Nationals of more than 130 countries need
visitor visas to enter Canada. Nationals of 60 countries are
exempt from the requirement for a visitor visa. In 1997, more
than 650,000 visitor visas were issued. A visitor visa must be
obtained at a Canadian
Mission Abroad before coming to Canada. Nationals from Germany,
Austria and Switzerland do not need Visas.
Cost-recovery fees are charged to process
applications for visitor visas, employment authorizations, student
authorizations and so on. These processing fees are not refundable
if an application is refused.
Applications must be submitted to the visa
office, along with the appropriate fee and required documents,
by mail or in person or dropped off. It is important to complete
all the questions and indicate whether a single entry or multiple
entry visa is required.
Visa officials may ask applicants to provide
further documentation or to come for an interview.
For more information on visiting Canada and
applying for a visitor visa, please see Applying
for a Visitor Visa. The application form may be downloaded
in Adobe® Acrobat format.
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VISITOR VISA EXEMPTIONS
Many people do not require a visa to visit
Canada. These include:
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citizens
of Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Austria, Bahamas,
Barbados, Belgium, Botswana, Brunei, Czech Republic, Cyprus,
Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary,
Iceland, Ireland, Israel (National Passport holders only),
Italy, Japan, Korea (Republic of), Latvia (Republic of),
Lithuania, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, Monaco,
Namibia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Papua New Guinea,
Poland, Portugal, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent,
San Marino, Singapore, Slovakia, Solomon Islands, Spain,
Swaziland, Sweden, Slovenia, Switzerland, United States, and
Western Samoa;
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persons
lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence
who are in possession of their alien registration card (Green
card) or can provide other evidence of permanent residence;
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British
citizens and British Overseas Citizens who are re-admissible to
the United Kingdom;
-
citizens
of British dependent territories who derive their citizenship
through birth, descent, registration or naturalization in one of
the British dependent territories of Anguilla, Bermuda, British
Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar,
Montserrat, Pitcairn, St. Helena or the Turks and Caicos
Islands;
-
persons
holding a British National (Overseas) Passport issued by the
Government of the United Kingdom to persons born, naturalized or
registered in Hong Kong;
-
persons
holding a valid and subsisting Special Administrative Region
passport issued by the Government of the Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China;
-
persons
holding passports or travel documents issued by the Holy See.
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CANPASS
Are you arriving in a remote area? If you
are a Canadian or U.S. citizen, you may qualify for the CANPASS
-- Remote Area Border Crossing (RABC) permit. This joint initiative
of Citizenship and Immigration Canada and Revenue Canada allows
the bearer to cross into Canada in certain remote areas without
reporting to a port of entry.
TRADE AGREEMENTS
Some business visitors may enter Canada more
easily under the provisions of trade agreements signed by Canada.
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