Super Visa 

Super Visa

It is obvious that you can miss your children or grandchildren who live in Canada. But if they are citizens or permanent residents of Canada, you can apply for a super visa to this country. A super visa Canada allows you to visit your children or grandchildren for up to two years at a time. Moreover, it is a multi-entry visa that gives you the right to enter and leave Canada multiple times for up to 10 years. However, if you want to apply for a super visa in Canada, you have to meet several requirements.

  • 1. You need to be the parent or grandparent of a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident of the country.
  • 2. You must have Canadian medical insurance that is valid for at least one year from the date of entry and has no less than 100,000 CAD coverage. Also, you need to prove that the medical insurance has been paid.
  • 3. You must have a signed letter of invitation from your child or grandchild. However, it does not guarantee that the immigration officer will issue you a super visa in Canada. The officer needs to assess you to decide whether you meet Canada’s immigration law terms.

Your child or grandchild must send you a notarized letter if the visa office asks for that. Then you need to send this letter to the Canadian consulate or embassy where you apply for a super visa Canada. Moreover, you can ask for help with your application at the nearest visa application center (VAC). If you want to find a VAC in your country, please visit the official web page of the Government of Canada.

It is better to check whether the letter of invitation includes all required information before sending it to the visa office. Your child or grandchild must include the following information about you: your full name, your date of birth, your telephone number, address, the relationship to you, the purpose of the visit, the period of your stay in Canada, when you plan to leave the country, your place of stay in Canada, and how you will cover your expenses in the country.

Your child or grandchild needs to include personal information too. The letter of invitation has to include the full name of the person who invites you, their date of birth, telephone number and address in Canada, their job title, a photocopy of the citizenship or permanent resident document, details of the family, and the total number of people living with your child or grandchild (names and dates of birth of their spouse and children).

Additionally, the letter of invitation for the super visa Canada must include a promise of financial support for the whole duration of the visit, made by your child or grandchild, and proof that the income of the person meets the requirements of the low-income cut-off (LICO) for the total number of people, which includes the visiting parents or grandparents.

Your child or grandchild can use several documents as proof of funds for your super visa Canada application: an employment letter, which includes salary and date of hire, bank statements, paycheck stub, Employment Insurance (EI) stubs, T4/T1, or Notice of Assessment (NOA) for the most recent tax year.

Also, there are other requirements you must meet to be eligible to apply for the super visa in Canada. Remember, you can apply for it online or on paper in the country of your residence. It is worth mentioning, you have to take an immigration medical exam, and you have to be allowed to cross the Canadian border. You can learn more about inadmissibility online.

The immigration officers also consider other conditions while reviewing your application for the super visa Canada. First of all, you cannot include your dependants in the application. Second, you have to prove that you have ties to your country of residence (children, job, etc.) and will leave Canada at the end of your visit. Third, you have to state the purpose of your visit to the country. Fourth, the immigration officer needs to check the family of your child or grandchild and their financial capability. Fifth, the immigration officer has to assess the overall political and economic situation of your country of residence. If the immigration officer concludes that you do not meet one of the requirements, you will not get the super visa Canada.

It is important to mention that if you are from a visa-required country, you need to give your biometrics (photo and fingerprints) after you apply for the super visa Canada. You can always find out more about your biometrics requirements online, before visiting the visa office.

If you apply for a super visa Canada from a visa-exempt country, the immigration officer will send you a letter. Then you need to give this letter to a border services officer when you arrive in the country. Moreover, you need to have an eTA (Electronic Travel Authorization) if you travel to Canada by air. It will be electronically linked to your passport. In this case, a border service officer will ask you to show the passport which you used to apply for the eTA and the letter in which your purpose of visiting Canada is explained.

You should know that most applications for a super visa are processed within a few weeks or even less. However, the processing times can be different since it depends on the chosen visa office. As it was mentioned above, you have to give your biometrics to apply for the super visa Canada. However, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has temporary measures in place for biometrics if your local visa application center is closed due to COVID-19. You can learn more about these possibilities on the official web page of the Government of Canada.

You need to know that the immigration officer will return your passport and all original documents to you after your application was processed. Remember, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada do not return any falsified documents.

If your application for a super visa Canada is approved, the visa will be stamped inside your passport. If you are from a visa-exempt country, the immigration officer will send you a letter that you will need to show when you enter Canada. However, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada will send you an explanation if your application is refused.