Canada announced that as of this Thursday the citizens of Argentina, Costa Rica, Panama and Uruguay who arrive in the country by air, and who have received a visa to enter the country in the last 10 years, they will no longer need that travel document.
Canada’s new travel rules also apply to people from these countries who have a valid visa to enter the United States.
In substitution of the visa, the citizens of these Latin American countries, as well as nine others from the rest of the world, they will only need an electronic travel authorization (eTA), a document obtained online that costs CDN$7 (5 US dollars).
Travelers with eTA will be able to stay in the country of tourism or business up to six months.
So far, of the Latin American countries, only the citizens of Chile and Mexico were exempt from the visa requirement.
Canada’s Immigration Minister, Sean Fraser, said in a statement that the move will allow thousands of people to travel to Canada safely. “faster, easier and more affordable”.
Fraser added that the elimination of the entry visa for some of the citizens of these countries “will help grow Canada’s economy by facilitating more international travel, tourism and business.
Those who travel to Canada by land or sea, or who are unable to obtain an eTA, will still need a visa to enter the country.
