The Canada Diplomatic and Official Visa is specifically for diplomats and officials who require to execute their official duties in Canada.
The Canadian government designed the Canada Diplomatic and Official Visa. The aim was to allow these diplomats and officials to visit Canada to fulfill their official responsibilities. These diplomats and government employees must be citizens of a nation that requests visas for entry into Canada. They must hold diplomatic or official passports.
If they fall under one of the following categories, they are exempt from needing this visa to enter Canada:
- They are traveling with an outdated passport that has been accepted diplomatically, consular, or officially. While the acceptance comes from the Canadian Chief of Protocol for Global Affairs.
- Also, if they are qualified diplomats, representatives, officers, or employees of a nation that is a member of the United Nations. It could be from other organizations of which Canada is a part.
Even if you are from one nation requiring an eTA to enter Canada for other purposes. Also, if you are a diplomat or official and are not in one of these instances, you will need a diplomatic or official Canada visa.
What can one do with a Canada Diplomatic and Official Visa?
You won’t have to go through a customs or immigration check when entering Canada if you have a Canadian Official and Diplomatic Visa. There will be a security check required of you.
You will have the right to remain in Canada once you have done so. Also, if you have an itinerary filled with obligations or official activities. You will not have the authority to attempt to work, study, or overstay your visa in Canada. Ineligibility to apply for Canadian citizenship, obtain documentation issued by Canada, or make claims for Canadian benefits like health insurance.
Only the itinerary for your official duties is permitted. You must proceed to apply for a Canada Visitor Visa or another appropriate visa if you intend to travel to Canada for leisure or other purposes. You must have official obligations in Canada to arrive with a diplomatic visa. This is despite having a diplomatic or official passport.
Its requirements
The Canada Diplomatic and Official Visa has several prerequisites. Your position inside your foreign government must be one of the primary prerequisites. The Official Visa and the Diplomatic Visa are both applicable to various occupations.
To be eligible for a diplomatic visa, you need to fall under one of the following categories:
- A head of state or a group representative has the head of state responsibilities. If you are the Head of State, the Head of Government, or a minister in a foreign government cabinet, your family members are eligible to travel with you to Canada on a diplomatic visa. Your family is welcome to go with you to Canada if you are the head of state.
- Career consular officer moving to or from your consular post. Or you are embarking on a temporary mission in Canada;
- Diplomatic agent flying to or from your diplomatic mission or you are commencing a temporary diplomatic mission there;
- Delegate from one of the international organizations specified in the Temporary Foreign Worker Guidelines, including delegates attending these organizations’ conferences but excluding administrative employees;
- A senior officer of an international organization specified in the Temporary Foreign Worker Guidelines, such as the secretary general, assistant secretary general, or equivalent positions;
Foreign diplomatic courier; - The senior officer at P-4 level or higher of the International Civil Aviation Organization’s Secretariat.
- Special case approved by the Diplomatic Corps Services Headquarters (XDC).
Qualified positions for official visa
Individuals who fit into one of the following categories are granted official visas:
- The service staff’s a member of a diplomatic mission or Canada’s consular post;
- The administrative and technical staff member of a diplomatic mission or international organization;
- You have a diplomatic or official passport and have been invited to a conference in Canada by the federal or a provincial/territorial authority;
- You are a contractual worker. For instance, a translator hired by the United Nations or the International Civil Aviation Organization concerning one of their organized assemblies,
- or you are an official or specialist who is acting on behalf of an international organization, which falls under the Temporary Foreign Worker Guidelines;
- You work for an organization under contract, such as the International Civil Aviation Organization or the United Nations, as a translator at one of their scheduled meetings;
- Private servant of a diplomatic mission or consular post’s member with a completed and submitted Household Domestic Worker Employment Agreement form from your GAC Protocol member employer.
- A person who is a member of one of the officials’ families.
US government officials – what are the qualifying rules for them?
There are additional requirements if you work for the US government. The R204 rule typically results in work permits for US government personnel. A Canada Diplomatic and Official Visa is not, however, available to all US government personnel in specific categories, such as:
- Department of Homeland Security (DHS) personnel.
- US Customs officers.
- The International Joint Commission’s personnel.
- Inspectors from the US Department of Agriculture’s Federal Grain Inspection Service. Other US government representatives with official US passports have been assigned a temporary posting in Canada.
Canada Diplomatic and Official Visa – what are the document requirements?
For a Canada Diplomatic & Official Visa, you must submit the following supporting documents:
The necessary paperwork needed for any visa to Canada includes: (choose any one)
- A written request from the nation’s Ministry of foreign affairs to which the head of the mission or post is accredited or whose visa issues fall under the purview of the diplomatic mission or consular station.
- A written request from your government’s diplomatic mission or consulate;
- A formal request was made in writing by one of the international organizations included in the temporary worker guidelines.
- A letter from the International Civil Aviation Organization Secretariat, sent to the diplomat or official and bearing the Secretary General’s signature.
- A declaration letter in which you ask the Canadian government to grant you a diplomatic and official visa.
- Two pictures for a Canadian visa.
What is the application process for Canadian Diplomatic and Official Visa?
A Canadian Diplomatic and Official Visa application differs from those for other Temporary Resident Visas in several ways. If you meet one of the aforementioned conditions, you may apply for a straight visa at your country’s Canadian Consulate or Embassy.
The application fees are further due. The official at the Canadian Embassy may interrogate you about the reason for your visit to Canada and your official responsibilities when you present the documents to the embassy. However, you won’t be required to submit to a medical exam or provide any Biometrics documentation.
Depending on their workload, the Consulate may take a few days or weeks to process the application. Also, they may react to your visa request right away. They might issue you the visa and stamp it on your passport. Alternatively, they will refuse it and inform you of the reasons behind doing so.
What are the costs for official and diplomatic visas to Canada?
You simply need to pay the application fee to apply for a Canada Diplomatic and Official Visa. The cost of the application is CAD 100. You won’t have to pay the price because you are exempt from biometrics, and you are also exempt from the processing fee for passports.
What is its validity?
Typically, this visa is granted for the individual’s official duties in Canada. However, once you enter Canada, the Diplomatic and Official Visa is often only valid for three months.
Can a person enter Canada with my dependents while holding a diplomatic or official visa?
You may bring your dependents into the nation to travel with you if you have a Diplomatic and Official Visa from Canada.
You are allowed to bring your children younger than 22 years old and your spouse or common-law partner. Only if your children are full-time students and over the age of 22 may they travel with you.
However, if your child is above 25, they cannot travel with you under your status and must instead apply for a visitor visa to Canada.
Some members of the service employees may also join you in addition to your family members if they fall under any of the following categories:
- Officials’ or diplomats’ personal staff (servants).
- The diplomats’ live-in Caregivers or family members or officials.
