In terms of those who may or may not need a visa to travel to Canada, generally speaking, there are:
- countries from which one requires a visa before travelling to Canada
- e.g., among many others, India, China, Pakistan, etc., and
- countries from which one requires only an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) to travel to Canada
- e.g., among many others, France, Australia, Japan, Italy, etc.
However, Canada has in the past created a kind of ‘hybrid’ for some countries, where, generally speaking, a visa is required, but under certain conditions, travel based on an eTA only would be allowed. This hybrid scenario has existed for Brazil, Bulgaria, and Romania, and the primary allowances for the elimination of the need for a visa are that:
- the person has held a Canadian visa in the last 10 years, or
- the person holds a current US visa, and that
- the person is flying to Canada [if driving, a visa is still needed]
Canada is now allowing for a significant number of other countries’ citizens to utilize this ‘hybrid’ allowance, and travel (by air) to Canada without a visa, under the same conditions as noted above. The countries for whom this new ‘waiver’ is now permitted are:
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Argentina
- Costa Rica
- Morocco
- Panama
- Philippines
- Kitts and Nevis
- Lucia
- Vincent and the Grenadines
- Seychelles
- Thailand
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Uruguay
This is of course of great assistance for citizens of those countries. Note however that this does not change the consideration of applying for a work permit for citizens of those countries, and that application may still need to be made through a consular process in advance.
The information in this article is for general purposes only, and not intended as legal advice for any particular situation.