Visit Canada

Extend Your Stay in Canada

If you want to remain in Canada beyond your current authorized stay as a visitor, you must apply before your temporary resident status expires. A visitor record may allow you to remain in Canada longer and gives you a new date by which you must leave Canada.

01 What Is a Visitor Record?

If you want to stay in Canada longer as a visitor, you must apply for a visitor record. A visitor record may also be used by a work or study permit holder who wants to change to visitor status, or by certain people authorized to work or study in Canada without a permit who need more time in Canada.

Permission to Remain in Canada

A visitor record gives you a new date by which you must leave Canada. It is not a visa and does not, by itself, authorize you to return to Canada after travelling abroad.

Document for Travel to Canada

A visitor visa is placed in a passport and may be required to travel to Canada. Its validity does not determine how long you may remain after entry.

Authorization for Air Travel

An electronic travel authorization may be required for an eligible visa-exempt traveller flying to or transiting through Canada. It does not extend temporary resident status.

02 When Should You Apply?

You must apply before your authorized stay expires. IRCC recommends applying at least 30 days before that date

Use the Date Written in Your Passport

If a border services officer wrote a departure date under your entry stamp, that date controls your authorized stay.

Use the Visitor Record Expiry Date

If you already hold a visitor record, apply before the expiry date printed on that document.

Use the Earlier Applicable Date

If no date was recorded when you entered, your stay is normally authorized for six months from entry or until your passport expires, whichever comes first.

Use the Permit Expiry Date

If you are changing from worker or student status to visitor status, apply before your current work or study permit expires.

03 What Must You Show?

You must continue to meet the requirements of the visitor class and show that you complied with the conditions of your stay. Your application should address:

why you want to remain in Canada longer;
your identity and current immigration status;
how you will support yourself during the proposed stay;
how you will pay for transportation when you leave Canada; and
your plans to leave Canada at the end of the requested period.

04 What If Your Status Has Expired?

You cannot extend status that has already expired. You may be able to apply to restore your temporary resident status within 90 days of losing it if you meet the applicable conditions.

Restoration is a separate request and approval is not guaranteed. You may remain in Canada while IRCC processes a restoration application, but you do not have maintained status. If you lost authorization to work or study, you generally cannot resume those activities until your status and any required permit have been restored or issued.

05 How to Apply

Visitor record applications are generally submitted online.

Review Your Deadline

Confirm the date your current status expires and allow enough time to submit a complete application before that date.

Prepare the Application

Use your personalized document checklist to gather the forms and evidence required for your circumstances.

Apply Online

Submit the application through the appropriate IRCC account, upload the required documents and pay the applicable fees.

Await the Decision

If IRCC receives your application before your required departure date, you may remain in Canada under maintained status while it is decided. If your application is approved, IRCC will issue a visitor record showing your new authorized period of stay.

06 Frequently Asked Questions

Does a visitor record let me leave and return to Canada?+

No. A visitor record does not guarantee re-entry. You may also need a valid visitor visa or eTA to travel back to Canada, and your admission will be assessed when you arrive.

Can I stay in Canada while IRCC decides my application?+

Yes, if IRCC received a complete extension application before your authorized stay expired. You may remain under maintained status until a decision is made, subject to the conditions that applied to you.

How long can a visitor usually stay in Canada?+

Most visitors may stay for up to six months. A different date may apply if one was written in your passport or set out on a visitor record, and passport expiry may shorten the available period.

Can I apply for an extension after my status expires?+

No. An expired status cannot be extended. You may be able to request restoration within 90 days if you meet the conditions, but approval is not guaranteed.

Can I continue working or studying after applying for a visitor record?+

Applying for a visitor record does not extend your authorization to work or study. If you are changing from worker or student status to visitor status, you must stop working or studying when your existing authorization expires unless you are otherwise legally authorized to continue.

What is maintained status?+

If you apply to extend your temporary resident status before it expires, you may remain legally in Canada while IRCC processes your application. This is known as maintained status. The activities you may continue during this period depend on the status and authorization you held and the type of application you submitted.

Talk to a Licensed Expert

Need More Time in Canada?

Our licensed team can review your current status, identify the applicable deadline and prepare your visitor record application.

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