Hi ALL,Visit your local Canada Visa Application Centre (CVAC), make sure you bring your passport, photographs, completed forms and all supporting documents as per checklist and IRCC fee instrument and payment instructions. Applicable service charges will be levied. Please ensure you bring an accepted method of payment.SUBMIT A CANADA VISA APPLICATION IN PAPER:1) The Canadian Visa Forms and FeeDownload the forms and document checklist from the VFS Canada website. Unlike most visa applications, the forms for a tourist visa to Canada are relatively short and few in number. As per the updated guidelines, Canada visa fee for Indians (both single entry and multiple entry visa) is now CAD 100 and the visa is valid for upto 10 years.2) Flight and Accommodation BookingsAs while applying for a Schengen visa, you need to show your confirmed flight and accommodation bookings. Making these in advance of the visa is always a bit of risk u2024 so youu2019re better off making fully refundable bookings. Most full-fledged carriers and hotels on Booking.com: The largest selection of hotels, homes, and vacation rentals offer full refund upon cancellation. Once you receive your visa, you can cancel these and make your actual bookings. The idea is to show that you have enough money or credit limit to book your flight and stay.3) Cover Letter and Support DocumentsAfter ensuring that all your documents are in order as per the document checklist on the VFS Canada website, you should write a brief cover letter summarizing your application u2024 why are you visiting Canada, how do you intend to cover your expenses, do you have an invitation letter, which countries have you obtained visas for in the past (having Europe, the UK or the US on the list tends to add to your credibility).4) Choose The Multiple Entry Visa OptionIu2019ve always found Schengen visas to be stingy when it comes to multiple entry and validity. But I got a multiple entry visa to Canada, valid for 7 years! The best 4,000 bucks every spent. Whether or not Canada seems to be part of your plans again, having a valid multiple entry tourist visa to Canada as an Indian, has its advantages u2024 you get Visa on Arrival in a handful of other countries, and it adds to your credibility while applying for other visas.4) Applying For The Visa at VFSVFS has ten visa centers for Canada, across India. If your city or town doesnu2019t have one, your options might be to go via a travel agent or courier your documents. You can reach the VFS Canada helpline to confirm.The passport submission timings at VFS are between 8 am-12 noon and 1 pm u2024 3 pm, and no appointment is needed. Youu2019ll be given a token number when you reach, and if you have all your documents in order, the process is quite straightforward.5. Passport CollectionThe official processing time is between 10 u2024 14 working days, but my visa was approved within 2 working days! You can sign up for the free SMS / email alerts at the time of submitting your passport, or track your application online.SUBMIT A CANADA VISA APPLICATION ONLINE:1. Answer a questionnaire to determine your eligibilityIn a series of 20 odd questions in the eligibility questionnaire (on this page, click on u201cfind out if you need a visau201d to get to the questionnaire), you are asked why youu2019re travelling to Canada, if you have relatives there, how long you plan to stay and so on. For a typical Canada tourist visa u2024 whether or not you know someone in the country, Indian citizens now tend to be eligible to apply.2. Create a GC Key and Security Q&ABefore you begin your online application, you are required to create a Government of Canada (GC) Key and security questions and answers. This is to allow easy access to your application.3. Upload the application form and supporting documentsAs in the paper application, you need to download the visitor visa form, fill the details and hit validate at the bottom of the form to generate the bar codes. Donu2019t make changes to the form after the barcodes are generated. If you are applying online, you donu2019t need to print the form or barcodes. The checklist for the supporting documents is the same as the paper application (described above), make sure you take clear photos / scanned copies of these documents.4. Declaration, electronic signature and credit card paymentOnce your documents are submitted, you need to fill a Declarations and Electronic Signature page and move on to payment (100 CAD) with a credit card. Consider your online application done!5. Submit your passport at VFS Canada to affix the Canada Visa on your passportThis part sucks. One would think that applying for the Canada visa online means NOT having to go to VFS Canada u2024 but turns out, you still need to submit your passport to affix the actual Canada visa on your passport. Based on what Iu2019ve heard from recent applicants on Twitter, you donu2019t need an appointment, and the process takes one week to ten days.Thank You !!
