More welcome to come to Canada without visa under changes to federal program

Travellers from more than a dozen countries will now be able to fly into Canada with a bit more ease.

Passport holders from 13 countries can now come into the country by plane without applying for a temporary visa, the federal government announced.

Eligible residents from Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Costa Rica, Morocco, Panama, Philippines, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Seychelles, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago or Uruguay can apply for an exemption under changes to Canada’s electronic travel authorization program.

Travellers must still have held either a Canadian visa in the last 10 years or currently hold a valid U.S. non-immigrant visa to be eligible for an eTA.

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The 13 countries join a long list of nations who can visit Canada without paperwork, though many require an eTA if coming to the country by air.

Prior to the change, travellers from those 13 countries required a valid visa to stay in Canada by any method of travel.

U.S. citizens remain the only population that doesn’t require an eTA or visa to enter Canada unless working or studying.

Sean Fraser, minister of immigration, refugees and citizenship, said in a press release the change will bolster Canada’s economic development and strengthen bonds with the included countries.

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