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Canada has amended its tourist visa policy, ending the practice of routinely granting 10-year multiple-entry visas. Announced on Thursday by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), the new guidelines give immigration officers more discretion, allowing them to issue shorter visas based on individual assessments rather than defaulting to extended durations.
The IRCC said that the shift was a part of a broader strategy aimed at managing temporary immigration levels, addressing housing shortages, and controlling the rising cost of living. The change means that frequent visitors to Canada may now encounter increased application costs and shorter-term visas, impacting those who regularly travel for work or leisure.
What was the previous policy?
Under the previous system, IRCC issued two types of tourist visas: multiple entry and single entry. However, applicants did not need to choose between them, as all applicants were automatically considered for a multiple-entry visa. This allowed visitors to enter Canada multiple times over the visa’s validity period, which could extend up to 10 years or until one month before the passport’s expiry, whichever was sooner.
For single-entry visas, travellers could only enter Canada once. These visas were generally reserved for specific cases, such as official visits by foreign nationals eligible for fee exemptions, participation in one-time events in Canada, or situations governed by country-specific guidelines. Once holders of single-entry visas left Canada, they would typically need a new visa to re-enter.