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First visit? Here's how the map works.

Steps run in order. A dashed step is blocked: something before it has to be finished first.

Check a step off when it's done. Whatever it was blocking unlocks by itself.

Some steps are IRCC's to make, not yours. Those show as waiting and can't be checked off.

Start with step 1: Find out what you actually need

Visitors and eTAApplyStep 2 of 5

Blocked$7 eTA · $100 visa · RequiredYou are here

2. Apply for the eTA or the visitor visa

An eTA is an online form: a passport, a payment card, an email address, CAN$7.

Waiting on: Find out what you actually need

Open this step

The rest of the pathway, folded up

This view fits the whole pathway on one screen: the step you're on is enlarged, its neighbours are shown small, and everything further out is folded into a summary bar you can open. The idea is borrowed from degree-of-interest trees (Card and Nation, 2002).

Times and fees on this page are rough and change without notice. Check canada.ca before you pay for anything or make a plan around a date.

Step 2 of 5 · RequiredClose

Apply for the eTA or the visitor visa

BlockedRequired

The authority on this stepElectronic travel authorization: how to applycanada.ca · Government of Canada

IRCC is the only authority here. Our summary is here to help you find your way. If anything below differs from the official page, the official page is right. Requirements, fees and processing times change without notice.

Our plain-language summaryLast reviewed 29 July 2026

An eTA is an online form: a passport, a payment card, an email address, CAN$7. A visitor visa is a fuller application at $100 per person. The officer decides whether it is single or multiple entry and how long it stays valid, up to ten years.

Why it's required: The eTA is linked to one passport. Renew the passport and the eTA stops working, even if its own five years haven't run out.

eTACAN$7Valid up to five years, or until the passport expires.

Visitor visa$100 per person$500 is the maximum for a family of five or more applying together.

Only official sitecanada.caPaid look-alike sites exist and charge far more for the same form.

Documents you'll need

A passport valid for the whole trip
A credit or debit card
An email address you actually check

Before this step

Not startedFind out what you actually need

Finishing this unlocks: Give biometrics (visa applicants), Decision