Canada Immigration (Visitor Visas)

This application is for persons from designated countries who wish to visit Canada for a temporary purpose, such as tourism, visiting family or friends, or business trips.

To obtain a visitor visa to Canada, you are required to submit a visitor visa application to a visa office at a Canadian embassy, high commission or consulate abroad in your area. You will also need to include two passport size pictures, proof of legally obtained available funds, along with a non-refundable processing fee.

The Immigration Act states that the burden of proof of establishing that a person has a right to come into Canada rests with the hands of the person who seeks admission to Canada. It also says that a person who applies to a visa officer is presumed to be an immigrant. Failure to satisfy a visa officer that you are entering Canada temporarily will result in refusal of the application.

Supporting Documentation

Applicant need to provide acceptable documentary evidence to satisfy the visa officer that he/she has the required funds to pay for all expenses that might be incurred while staying in Canada.

If the individual is visiting relatives and the relatives are going to assume responsibility for the expenses incurred by the visiting relative in Canada, it would be necessary to have a letter or statutory declaration from the relative setting out responsibility for all expenses. The relative must also indicate that he/she has the necessary resources, and it would be helpful if the relative includes documentation such as a job letter, bank statements, and more.

It is important that the applicant and all dependants be in possession of valid and subsisting passports or travel documents. Once a validity date is set out in the passport, a visitor visa to Canada will not be issued beyond this date and a person cannot be admitted to Canada at a port of entry by an immigration officer for a period that exceeds the expiry date of the visa issued in the applicant's passport.

The visa officer's main concern is whether the applicant will return to their home country at the end of the visit. Hence, supporting documentation showing that the person has full-time permanent employment, length of employment, proof of assets including house, bank accounts, etc. will be important for the approval process.