On November 6, 2024, the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced a revision to its visitor visa policy, eliminating the automatic issuance of 10-year multiple entry visas. Immigration officers will now assess applications to determine the appropriate visa type and its validity period.

Canada’s Multiple Entry Visa

Purpose: The multiple entry visa allows eligible travelers to enter Canada multiple times within the visa’s validity period.

Validity: Under the previous regulations, visas could be valid for up to 10 years, or until the expiration of the travel document or biometrics. However, the new policy indicates that validity will be determined based on the assessment by immigration officers, who will decide whether to issue a single-entry or multiple-entry visa, and may also opt to grant visas with a validity period shorter than the maximum allowed.

Criteria for Evaluation of Canadian Visitor Visa

Immigration officers may decide to issue visas with validity periods shorter than 10 years or below the maximum allowable. The IRCC has outlined several factors for consideration:

• Is there a short-term purpose for the visit, for example, a business visitor providing after-sales support as part of a warranty or sales agreement?
• What is the applicant’s status in their current country of residence? Will their ties to their country of residence and to Canada change over time?
• Are economic or political conditions in the applicant’s home country unstable?

Impact on Applicants

Travelers planning to visit Canada frequently may need to apply for new visas for each trip, which may increase application costs and processing times. Therefore, it is advisable to submit more comprehensive application materials and detailed explanations of travel purposes when applying for a Canadian Visitor Visa.

For more details, please visit the official news release on the Canadian Government’s website.

Visit TWA Canada Immigration News for more related updates.