Visitor-visa eligibility includes temporary intent and admissibility.
Dual intent is lawful: a person may also be interested in permanent residence, but must still satisfy the officer that they will comply with temporary status if no further authorization is granted.
Travel and identity
Use a valid passport or accepted travel document and provide biometrics, medical examination or other identity evidence when required.
Temporary purpose
Show a credible reason, dates, accommodation, available funds and a realistic plan to leave at the end of the authorized stay.
Ties and compliance
Employment or business, studies, close family duties, assets, travel history and previous immigration compliance can support return.
Admissibility
Criminality, security, human-rights violations, organized crime, health, financial concerns, prior non-compliance and misrepresentation must be assessed.
Build one consistent evidence package around the real purpose of travel.
- 01
Provide passport pages and travel history, civil-status records, proof of lawful residence in the country of application, and compliant translations of non-English/French documents.
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Use a focused purpose letter covering the exact reason, dates, itinerary, accommodation, who pays, cost estimate, employment or study leave and the planned return.
- 03
Show available funds and their source with reliable records. Explain large or recent deposits; the host’s funds do not replace the applicant’s own circumstances unless the support plan is credible and documented.
- 04
Include the host’s invitation, identity/status, address, relationship and financial evidence where relevant. An invitation supports the purpose but never guarantees approval.
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Match evidence to purpose: tourism itinerary; family relationship and event; business meetings and foreign employment; compassionate medical/family evidence; or sponsored-spouse AOR and continuing temporary-visit compliance.
- 06
For a minor travelling alone or with one parent, include custody documents and a signed consent letter where applicable. Never submit a purchased invitation, invented job or altered bank evidence.
Apply through the correct IRCC account and complete every requested step.
- 01
Use the official travel-document checker first. Visitor, family, business, compassionate, super-visa and transit applications can use the applicable IRCC Portal route; some applicants use the IRCC secure account.
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Answer the questionnaire accurately and use the document checklist created for the applicant’s nationality, location and purpose. Paper applications are limited to specified situations.
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Upload readable documents, pay the live processing and biometrics fees, submit before any deadline and keep the payment receipt and full copy of the filed package.
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After submission, book biometrics promptly if instructed and monitor the account for medical, interview, additional-document or procedural-fairness requests.
- 05
Approval of an online TRV application normally leads to passport-submission instructions. The applicant cannot travel on the approval letter alone; the visa must be placed in the passport.
- 06
If refused, read the reasons and officer record strategy before reapplying. Re-submitting the same facts and documents rarely fixes purpose, finance, ties or credibility concerns.
Government fees and outside costs must be budgeted separately.
Medical exams, translations, notarization, VAC services, passport transmission, courier, insurance and professional fees are separate. Always re-check the live fee list before payment.
| Application or service | Government fee on August 12, 2026 | Important detail |
|---|---|---|
| Visitor visa / Super visa | CAN$100 per person | The same fee applies whether IRCC issues single or multiple entry |
| Visitor-visa family maximum | CAN$500 | Only for an eligible family of 5 or more applying together at the same time and place |
| Visitor record / extend stay | CAN$100 per person | Every family member needs their own application and status |
| Restore visitor status | CAN$246.25 per person | This is restoration, not an extension; there is no maintained status while waiting |
| Biometrics | CAN$85 per person; eligible family maximum CAN$170 | Pay only when required; prior valid biometrics may change what is needed |
| eTA | CAN$7 per person | One application at a time, linked electronically to the passport |
| Transit visa | No processing fee | A complete application and eligibility are still required |
Approval allows travel; CBSA makes the entry and stay decision.
A valid multiple-entry visa may remain usable after one trip, but every arrival is a new examination and every stay has its own expiry date.
Port-of-entry review
The officer may ask about purpose, funds, accommodation, return plan, health, criminal history, work/study intentions and goods.
Authorized stay
Most visitors are admitted for up to 6 months. A stamp or visitor record can set a shorter or longer date, and passport expiry can shorten the stay.
No stamp
Current IRCC visitor-visa guidance says the deadline is generally the earliest of 6 months after entry, passport expiry and, where applicable, biometrics expiry. Keep entry evidence and confirm the date for the individual traveller.
Carry-on evidence
Keep passport, visa/eTA, invitation, itinerary, insurance, funds and purpose evidence accessible—not in checked luggage.
Visitor status, a visitor record and a TRV solve different travel problems.
- 01
A visitor record shows status and the leave-by date inside Canada. It does not guarantee re-entry after travel.
- 02
A visa-required traveller normally needs a valid TRV to seek re-entry; an eTA-required traveller flying needs a valid eTA linked to the passport. Limited direct-return exceptions from the United States or Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon must be checked against the live rule.
- 03
Only a person already in Canada with a valid study or work permit who plans to leave and return soon—and whose TRV is expired, expiring or single-entry—can normally use the special in-Canada TRV process.
- 04
IRCC recommends that an eligible worker/student apply for the new TRV at least 2 months before travel and not leave before receiving it. A person present only as a visitor generally cannot use this inside-Canada TRV route.
- 05
Leaving while a visitor-record application is pending does not secure return or the requested extension. CBSA makes a fresh admission decision at the border.
Official sources & application
The practical answer is in this guide; use these links to verify live changes and apply officially.
Ghasedak explains the eligibility, evidence, process and important cautions in plain language. Because laws, forms, fees and filing methods can change, also check the live official instructions on the day you submit. This is general information, not individual legal advice.