Super Visa

What is a super visa?

A super visa is a type of visa that allows parents or grandparents of Canadian citizens or permanent residents to stay in Canada for up to 5 years at a time with multiple entries, valid for up to 10 years. The duration of stay is determined by the border services officer upon entry. However, certain requirements must be met to be eligible for a super visa. One of which is that you must have medical insurance from a Canadian insurance company, which must be paid in full, be valid for at least 1 year from the date of entry, and provide for at least $100,000 emergency coverage, as well as coverage for healthcare, hospitalization, and repatriation.

Eligibility

To be eligible, you must also apply for the super visa from outside Canada, have a signed letter from your child or grandchild who is a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, which includes a promise of financial support for the length of your visit and a copy of the child or grandchild’s Canadian citizenship or permanent resident document, and meet certain other conditions. Additionally, you must provide proof of funds or financial support from your child or grandchild who invites you, such as Notice of Assessment, Employment Insurance Benefit statements, employment letter, pay stubs, or bank statements.

Financial support (proof of funds)

Furthermore, there are other conditions that must be considered before granting a super visa. These conditions include the purpose of your visit, your ties to your home country, your family and finances, and the overall economic and political stability of your home country. You cannot include dependents in your application, and you must take an immigration medical exam. If you want to stay in Canada for 6 months or less, it is recommended to apply for a visitor visa instead

Other conditions we consider

We consider several things before we decide if you can come to Canada. You must be a genuine visitor to Canada who will leave by choice at the end of your visit.
We’ll look at these things when you apply:
● your ties to your home country
● the purpose of your visit
● your family and finances
● the overall economic and political stability of your home country

How to apply

1. Get your documents ready

Prepare your documents

Before applying for a super visa, make sure you have the following documents ready:

A letter of invitation from your child or grandchild who is a Canadian citizen or permanent resident that includes:

A promise of financial support for the entire duration of your visit
A promise of financial support for the entire duration of your visit
The number of people and a list of individuals living in the household of the person inviting you
A copy of their Canadian citizenship or permanent resident document

Proof that your child or grandchild’s household meets the minimum necessary income, which can be shown through documents such as:

Notice of Assessment (NOA) or T4/T1 for the most recent tax year
Employment Insurance Benefit statements
Employment letter that includes your salary, job title, job description, and date of hiring
Pay stubs
Bank statements

Proof of payment for medical insurance from a Canadian insurance company that covers:

At least $100,000 emergency coverage
Valid for a minimum of 1 year from the date of entry
A document confirming that you had an immigration medical exam.

Are you visa-exempt? You can still apply for a super visa.

Even if you are not required to have a visitor visa to enter Canada, you can still apply for a super visa to stay in Canada for up to 5 years. If your super visa application is approved, you will receive a letter that you need to present to a border services officer when you arrive in Canada. If you are traveling by air, you may also need to separately apply for an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) to enter Canada. The eTA will be electronically linked to your passport, so you need to travel with the same passport you used to apply for your eTA and your super visa approval letter to facilitate your travel to Canada.

2. Apply for a super visa

To apply for a super visa, you must use the IRCC Portal and submit your application online. Additionally, you must be outside of Canada when you submit your application.