The new visa requirement is in effect at 11:30 p.m. (Eastern), Feb. 29, 2024, the same day Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Minister Marc Miller announced the move.
Mexicans have not needed visas to come here since 2016, when the then-new Liberal government eliminated the requirement.
Immigration Minister Marc Miller
“We don't need that becoming part of the political debate in the U.S. as they go into a politically charged season,” Miller remarked. “The numbers have jumped in the last year, and it's people that are sort of gaming the system by coming into Canada, because they couldn't get into the U.S., and then transiting into America.”
While the number of people involved is not large, it shouldn’t be happening, he said.
Asked by a reporter whether he is examining the possibility of requiring visas for visitors from other countries, Miller answered “yes.”
“But it won't be easy,” he added, without specifying which countries.
The announcement from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) states that Mexican citizens who hold a valid U.S. non-immigrant visa or have held a Canadian visa in the past 10 years and are traveling by air on a Mexican passport will be able to apply for electronic travel authorizations (eTA).
“With the high number of Mexican citizens currently holding U.S. visas, the majority will continue to enjoy visa-free travel to Canada,” IRCC’s media release states.
“Those who do not meet these conditions will need to apply for a Canadian visitor visa. This responds to an increase in asylum claims made by Mexican citizens that are refused, withdrawn or abandoned. It is an important step to preserve mobility for hundreds of thousands of Mexican citizens, while also ensuring the sound management of our immigration and asylum systems.”
IRCC said all eTAs issued to Mexican passports before 11:30 p.m. Eastern time Feb. 29, 2024, will no longer be valid — except for eTAs linked to Mexican passports with a valid Canadian work or study permit.
Mexican citizens traveling to Canada without a valid work or study permit will need to apply for a visitor visa or reapply for a new eTA, if they are eligible.
The government said Mexican citizens holding a valid work or study permit can still travel by air to Canada with their existing eTA as long as it remains valid, and they can continue to study or work in Canada based on the validity and conditions of their permit.
Mexican visitors who are already in Canada on an eTA can stay for as long as they are authorized (up to six months from the date they arrive in Canada). However, if they plan to leave Canada and wish to return, they must have the proper travel documents (i.e. a visa or a new eTA).
IRCC said most approved visa applicants receive multiple-entry visas, which allow them to visit Canada as many times as they want, for up to 10 years, or until their passport expires.
The eTA is a digital travel document that most visa-exempt travellers need in order to travel to, or transit through, Canada by air. IRCC began expanding the eTA program to eligible citizens from visa-required countries in 2017. Mexico will now be among 15 countries whose citizens can fly to Canada on an eTA, instead of a visa, if they meet the requirements, IRCC said.
The government noted the application process for Mexican citizens seeking a work or study permit will not change. “Mexican citizens who want to work in Canada will continue to have access to a wide number of existing labour pathways, including the Temporary Foreign Worker Program and the International Mobility Program.”
IRCC called its Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP) “a vital example of the mutually beneficial migration that we seek to promote regionally and globally.”
The department said “Canada is ready to work with Mexico to build on this program, through the modernization of a new SAWP bilateral agreement, to offer Mexican workers new opportunities, through the incorporation of year-round primary agriculture and seasonal fish, seafood and primary food processing into the program. This will benefit workers and businesses on both sides of the Canada–Mexico relationship.”
The government stated “any adjustment to Canada’s travel requirements are made to preserve the integrity and sustainability of our asylum and immigration systems.”
It said asylum claims by Mexican citizens “reached a record high in 2023” — 23,995 claims — “at a time when Canada’s asylum system, housing and social services were already under significant pressure.”
About 60 per cent of the asylum claims made by Mexicans were either rejected by the Immigration and Refugee Board, or withdrawn or abandoned by the applicant.
“In 2023 alone, asylum claims from Mexican citizens accounted for 17 per cent of all claims made that year from all nationalities around the world, IRCC said. “The country’s asylum claim rate has risen significantly since the visa was first lifted in 2016, from 260 claims in 2016 to 23,995 claims in 2023.”
The government said it is continuously monitoring the impacts of its visa policies for both visa-exempt and visa-required countries, as well as asylum claim trends. “These challenges are not limited to one country,” IRCC said.
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