Temporary Residency

A temporary resident visa (TRV) is an official counterfoil document issued by a visa office that is placed in a foreigner’s passport to indicate that they have met the requirements for admission to Canada as a temporary resident.

Granting a TRV does not assurance entry to Canada. The admitance of foreign nationals into Canada as temporary residents is a pleasure, not a right.

Temporary Resident Visa (TRV) Types:

Single-entry visa

The single-entry visa

• allows the foreign national to enter Canada only once during the validity of the visa;
• may be issued up to six months before the expected date of travel;
• should have an expiry date of at least one month after the expected date of arrival in Canada.

Multiple-entry visa

The multiple-entry visa

• allows the holder to seek entry into Canada from any country as often as necessary during the validity of the visa;
• is issued with long-term validity to facilitate entry into Canada for legitimate travelers;
• has a maximum validity date of up to ten years or one month before the expiry date on the travel document;
• can still be valid but affixed in an expired travel document (in this case, the holder must also be in possession of a newer and valid travel document and must present both travel documents to the airline carrier in order to travel to Canada and to the border services officer in order to seek entry into Canada).

Transit visa

Foreign nationals who are required to obtain a visa for travel to Canada will also need a transit visa to travel through Canada without stopping or visiting. This visa is required even if the foreign national will be in Canada for less than 48 hours. There is no fee for a transit visa.

The Transit Without Visa program (TWOV) and the China Transit Program (CTP) allow certain foreign nationals to transit through Canada on their way to and from the United States without a Canadian transit visa, if they meet certain requirements.

Source: immigration, refugee & Citizenship Canada