Visa policy of Canada

A foreign national wishing to enter Canada must obtain a temporary resident visa from one of the Canadian diplomatic missions unless he or she holds a passport issued by one of the 52 eligible visa exempt countries and territories or proof of permanent residence in the United States.

All visa exempt travelers except Americans to Canada are required to obtain an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) when arriving Canada by air since 10 November 2016. Travelers were able to apply early as of 1 August 2015.

Applications of visitor visas, work permits, study permits and certain types of permanent residency can be lodged online.

Holders of passports issued by the following countries and territories are able to visit Canada without obtaining a visa for a period of up to six months. They are required to obtain an eTA if they arrive by air, except for U.S. nationals and citizens of France residing in Saint Pierre and Miquelon arriving directly from the territory, who are exempt from the eTA requirement.

Visitors are eligible if they are in good health, can convince an immigration officer that they have ties (job, home, financial assets or family) that will take them back to their home country and have enough money for their stay. In some cases a medical exam or a letter of invitation may be required.

On entry, Canada Border Services Officer (BSO) stamp passports or travel documents and visitors are granted a stay of 6 months from the date of entry. If a specific date was written on the stamp, however, the visitor must leave Canada before that date. Visitors wishing to extend their status date must apply 30 days before it expires.

In order to be added to the visa waiver list a country has to fulfill about 40 conditions, grouped into seven categories:

The decision is made by analyzing all of the criteria in an overall review instead of a checklist so there is a certain level of flexibility.

In December 2013, the Canadian government announced intention to introduce a system named Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA), similar to the U.S. Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA), as part of an action plan to establish a common approach to screening visa-exempt foreign nationals. The Privacy Commissioner of Canada expressed concern over the plan.

...
Wikipedia