Temporary Resident Visa for Canada

Travelling to Canada as a Visitor

Heard of the beautiful Canadian tourist attraction? Would like to visit Canada on your next vacation? You may or may not need a Temporary Resident Visa (TRV) in order to enter Canada as a visitor/tourist. Let’s see if you qualify for one.

Who needs to apply for a Temporary Resident Visa?

Not all foreign nationals need to apply for a Temporary Resident Visa when traveling through Canada or visiting Canada. Your eligibility depends on your citizenship, for examples, citizens of United States do not need a visa to enter Canada. Citizens of Afghanistan do need a visa to enter Canada and citizens of Croatia need to apply for an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) to enter Canada. What kind of authorization you need can also depend on your personal situation. For example, if you are an American citizen with a criminal record, you do not need a Temporary Resident Visa but you may need a Temporary Resident Permit which is a much longer process and we have many blogs written on it on our website.

Some of the countries who do not need to apply for a TRV are:

• Australia

• Bahamas

• Barbados

• Belgium

• Germany

• France

• Finland

• Netherland

• New Zealand

• Spain

• Republic of Korea

• Western Samoa and Zimbabwe

• Monaco

• Denmark

• Singapore

• Sweden

• Malta

• Italy

• Brunei

Some of the countries who need to apply for a Temporary Resident Visa to enter Canada

• Argentina

• Algeria

• Cambodia

• Cape verde

• Central African republic

• Brazil

• Ecuador

• Egypt

• Democratic republic of Congo

• Bangladesh

• Georgia

• Iran

• Iraq

• Lebanon

• Morocco

• Trinidad and Tobago

• Nepal

• Nigeria

• Oman

• Qatar

• Romania

• Somalia

• South Africa

• Rwanda

• Saudi Arabia

• Senegal

• Peru

• Philippines

• Russia

• Cuba

• Yemen

• Pakistan

• India

Eligibility to apply for a Temporary Resident Visa

There are many requirements that you need to fulfill once you have determined your need for a temporary resident visa. Some of the basic requirements to look after before applying for a TRV are:

• Financial stability – show proof of funds – there are many ways of doing this

• Strong ties to your country of residence

• Valid identity such as a passport

• Proof that you will only reside in Canada as long as your visa permits

• Invitation from the person/group inviting you to Canada

• Proof of good health

• No criminal record

Note: you may be asked to provide all of the above or less or more to apply for your Temporary Visa for Canada. What kind of documents you will need depends solely on your unique situation.

Remember, permanent residents of Canada do not need to apply for a Temporary Resident Visa and a citizen of a visa-exempt country you need to travel with your permanent resident card in order to re-enter Canada. If your PR card expires and you are outside of Canada then you cannot enter Canada with that card. There are special procedures to follow in that case, it is highly recommended to consult an immigration lawyer if this is your situation.

Applications for Temporary Resident Visas are one of the fastest applications in Canadian immigration. Having said that, TRV applications are also one of the hardest and most challenging applications to get approved by immigration officers. Keep in mind that submitting a strong and complete application will increase your chances of approval. Make sure that all the above documents are submitted and that you should be able to provide proof for all the claims you make such as proof of funds and ties to resident country. There are a set of immigration forms drafted by the Canadian government for individuals who apply for this application. Make sure that you forms are filled out correctly, validated and are up to date.

A Temporary Resident Visa can be applied online through the government website or on paper. Its’ crucial to say that online application are processed a bit faster as paper application take longer due to mailing time. Ultimately there is no guarantee of how long the processing of a TRV takes; it all depends on your application. Remember, after you have applied to Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada, you may be asked to provide supplementary documents such as:

• Medical examination

• Criminal record check

How long is a Temporary Resident Visa valid for?

Duration of visa will be determined once you enter Canada by a Canada Border Service Agent at the border. In most situations a six month period is granted. You can be granted less than six months as well, time is not guaranteed. You can always apply to extend the validity of your visa but make sure that you apply at least 30 days before the expiration of your Visitor Visa. Staying past the validity of your visa without applying for extension or without getting approval is a crime and can result in removal from Canada and you may never be able to enter Canada.

Note: you cannot apply for a TRV upon arrival to Canada, you must apply before you leave your country of residence and wait for approval.

Different types of Temporary Resident Visas

If you want to enter Canada only once then you should apply for a single entry visa. A single entry visa enables you to enter Canada only once and when you leave you cannot enter again on the same visa, you have to reapply. If you would like to be able to enter Canada every so often or have family that you wish to visit annually then you are better off with a multiple entry visa. A multiple entry visa can be valid for up to ten years and each time you enter Canada you can stay for six months. If your passport expires before the ten year then your visa also expires. The immigration officer pertaining to your application may approve you for a multiple entry visa even if you apply for a single entry visa given your situation.

Note: there are certain things that you cannot do while you are in Canada on a visitor visa such as work or study.

If your Temporary Resident Application gets Rejected

As mentioned before, it is very hard to get Temporary Resident Visas approved. Apart from submitting an incomplete application you may simply be inadmissible to enter Canada. This means that you may be:

• Criminal history- this could be a DWI or even a more serious offence

• Medical condition/s – such that it would be contagious

• Security risk to Canada

• Human or international rights violation

• Membership in an organization that takes part in organized crime

• Financial reasons

• Misrepresentation by the individual

• In violation of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada

Looking to apply for a Temporary Resident Visa? Then contact Akrami and Associates

Akrami and Associates has assisted many clients with different immigration matters from Temporary Resident Permit to many successful Temporary Resident Visas. Contact Akrami and Associates for more information on how to apply for this application. For more details call 416-477-2545. Our immigration experts have submitted many successful immigration applications and we can help you achieve your immigration goals as well. Contact us today!

With Akrami and Associates there is always a way!!