February 7th, 2014 -- The Government of Canada is set to introduce changes to its temporary visitor visas as of February 6th 2014. The announcement was made by Chris Alexander, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Canada, the department responsible for citizenship and immigration processing in Canada. In his statement the Minister explained that the new changes were designed to appeal to “the needs of international travellers who are looking for flexible, fast and convenient options to come to Canada” .
Key changes will be the harmonizing of the single- and multiple-entry visa fees, under the temporary resident visa (TRV). Under the new scheme, applicants of the TRV will automatically be considered for a multiple-entry visa, which allows qualified visitors to come and go from Canada for 6 months at a time for up to 10 years without having to reapply each time. The processing fee for visitors applying for stay under the (TRV) will be reduced from CAD $150 to CAD $100.
Alternatively, visitors applying for study permits will incur a CAD $25 fee increase to make the new application fee CAD $150. While visitors applying for work permits will incur a CAD $5 fee increase, the new application fee being CAD$ 155. The fee increases come after an almost 20 year freeze on visa fees and is designed to relieve some of the burden placed on Canadian tax-payers by more accurately reflecting the real cost of processing applications. Currently, Canada welcomes more than 35 million visitors to its shores each year and continues to offer the most competitively priced temporary entry visitor visas when compared to the US, UK, Australia and New Zealand.
Applicants from Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean are advised that all visa and immigration applications are processed at the High Commission of Canada in Trinidad only. All fees are payable in Canadian Dollars and are non-refundable regardless of the outcome of your application.
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