Changes to electronic travel authorization (eTA) and visitor visa requirements for Mexican citizens

When you fly to Canada, you must

• travel with the same passport you used to apply for your eTA
  • If you get a new passport after applying for an eTA, you must apply for a new eTA using your new passport.
• travel with your passport containing your work or study permit, if applicable

We recommend you

• bring a printed copy and a digital copy of your eTA confirmation email
• bring your old passport if it contains either
  • your expired Canadian visitor visa (temporary resident visa)
  • your US non-immigrant visa
    • Your visa must be valid when you apply for your eTA, but not necessarily when you travel to Canada.

You can check our processing times to find out how long it might take to get your visa.

If you’re travelling soon, you should indicate in detail in your application the urgent and/or compelling reason for your travel. This information may be considered when your application is processed.

The approval of requests for urgent or expedited processing are not guaranteed.

If possible, we recommend delaying your travel until your visitor visa application has been finalized. If you can’t get a visa in time, you will need to adjust your travel plans. IRCC won’t give refunds for lost travel expenses.

• Eligibility requirements for work and study permits have not changed.
• You must apply for your work or study permit outside Canada. You can’t apply for a work or study permit at a Canadian airport, even if you hold an eTA issued after 11:30 p.m. ET on February 29, 2024. There are some exceptions for study permit applicants.

• If we approve your work or study permit application, we’ll automatically issue you a visitor visa (you don’t need to apply separately for a visa).
• We will request your passport so that we can affix the visa counterfoil (sticker) into your passport, so you can travel to Canada.
• You can check the status of your application here.

• You were issued an eTA which you can still use to travel to Canada by air, as long as it’s valid.
• We’ll print your work or study permit upon arrival at a Canadian airport.

• We have not cancelled your eTA. You can continue to travel to Canada by air with your existing eTA, as long as it’s still valid.

• A study or work permit is not a travel document. To travel back to Canada, you either need a valid visitor visa, or an eTA if you meet the requirements.

• Eligibility requirements to apply for a new work or study permit in Canada have not changed.
• Most people are automatically issued a visitor visa when we approve their application. You don’t need to apply for a visa separately.

• Eligibility requirements to extend your work or study permit in Canada have not changed.
• If we approve your application, we’ll automatically issue you an eTA, if you are eligible.
• If you weren’t issued an eta, you must apply for a new visitor visa in Canada if you plan to leave and return to Canada.

• You can keep working in Canada based on the validity and conditions of your permit.
• We have not cancelled your eTA. You can leave and travel back to Canada by air with your existing eTA as long as it’s still valid.
• During your period of authorized stay in Canada, you’re also allowed to travel directly to the US or Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon and return directly to Canada by car, bus, train or boat without a visitor visa. If you exit either of those countries at any time before you return to Canada (including travelling into international waters by boat), you will need to return by air, or you will need a visitor visa to re-enter Canada by car, bus, train or boat.

You can stay in Canada for as long as you are authorized to do so. If you have a visitor record, it will remain valid.

However, your eTA will be cancelled. If you leave Canada and wish to return, you need to have

• a visitor visa, or
• a new eTA that was issued after February 29, 2024, at 11:30 p.m. ET

If you were approved for permanent residence, we’ll send you a

• permanent resident visa (either a physical one or an electronic one)
• confirmation of permanent residence (COPR)

Your permanent resident visa is still valid for travel to Canada. You don’t need to apply for an eTA or a visitor visa.

Make sure to bring your COPR when you travel. You need to show it to the Government of Canada officer when you enter Canada.

If you’re a dual Canadian-Mexican citizen, you need a valid Canadian passport to travel to Canada.

If your second citizenship is from a visa-exempt country, other than Canada or the United States, you can apply for an eTA to fly to Canada using the passport of the visa-exempt country.

As a lawful permanent resident of the United States you don’t need a visa or eTA to travel to Canada.

When travelling to Canada, you must travel with your United States green card and a valid passport from your country of citizenship.

If you have a Mexican diplomatic passport, you can apply for an eTA if you meet the requirements under the new rules. If you’re eligible, you can use your personal or diplomatic passport to apply.

However, if you’re travelling to Canada for official or diplomatic purposes, you might need a visa. You can answer some questions to find out.

Cruise ship workers

A member of a ship’s crew who arrives in Canada on the ship that employs them does not need a visitor visa if both

• they enter Canada as a member of the crew of the vessel, and
• they stay in Canada only as a member of the crew of that vessel

A Mexican crew member arriving by air to join a vessel as a crew member needs a visitor visa.

Cruise ship passengers

All Mexican travellers who want to enter Canada by boat need a visitor visa.