Filipinos who traveled to Canada in the last ten years and holders of United States non-immigrant visas can now enter Canada visa free.
The Canadian government said that if Filipinos would qualify in these two categories, they can only apply for an electronic visa. The Philippines is among the 13 countries added to Canada’s eTA program.
The announcement came after the visit of Canadian foreign minister Melanie Joly in the Philippines.
“Canada values our relationship with the Philippines. With the well-established Filipino diaspora in Canada, along with an increasing number of students and tourists, we recognize the importance of expanding and simplifying travel between our countries.
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Canada is pleased to announce the addition of the Philippines to the electronic travel authorization (eTA) program,” the Canadian government said in a statement.
“The Philippines considers Canada as a close partner due to its well-established people-to-people ties and looks forward to charting a new era of engagement under this new policy,” Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo said.
Visa fee for eTA $7 CAD and most applications are approved within minutes as compared to the $100 CAD processing fee for a visitor visa.
Over the last 10 years, Canada issued 466,936 temporary resident visas to citizens from the Philippines.
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