Business visitors

Conditions you must meet

• Plan to stay in Canada for less than 6 months

  you plan to stay for less than 6 months

• Do not plan to enter the Canadian labour market

  you don’t plan to enter the Canadian labour market

• Main place of business, and source of income and profits, is outside Canada

  your main place of business, and source of income and profits is outside Canada

• Hold documents that support the application

  you have documents that support your application

• Hold a valid travel document, such as a passport

  have a valid travel document, such as a passport

• Have enough money for the stay and to return home

  have enough money for your stay and to return home

• Plan to leave Canada at the end of the visit

  plan to leave Canada at the end of your visit

• Not a criminal, security or health risk to Canadians

  are not a criminal, security or health risk to Canadians

• A stay over 6 months or an intention to work requires a work permit insteadIRCC frames this as the boundary of the business visitor category rather than a requirement of it. Recorded because an applicant who crosses it is applying for the wrong thing.

  If you plan to stay for more than 6 months or plan to work in Canada, you may be considered a temporary worker and have to apply for a work permit

• Foreign nationals living in the DRC, South Sudan or Uganda cannot travel to CanadaA public-health measure IRCC publishes on this page, not a permanent feature of the category. The daily source monitor will raise a change for review if IRCC lifts it.

  Foreign nationals living in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan and Uganda can’t travel to Canada as of May 27, 2026.

• Anyone who has visited the DRC within the past 21 days cannot travel to CanadaNo rule: VisaAI has no fact recording recent country visits, and inventing one to gate this would risk hiding a hard travel bar from the person it applies to.

  As of July 20, 2026, foreign nationals who have visited the Democratic Republic of the Congo within the past 21 days can’t travel to Canada.

• Check the entry requirements for minors when travelling with a child

  Delegates who plan to travel with a child (17 years of age or younger) should consult the entry requirements for minors.

• A letter of invitation does not guarantee a visa will be issuedRecorded so the letter is never presented to a user as an approval signal.

  If you need a visa, a letter of invitation does not guarantee that a visa will be issued. Visa officers assess applicants to find out if they are eligible to visit Canada.

Documents you must provide

• Passport or travel document valid for your entire stay

  a passport or travel document that is valid for your entire stay

• Valid visitor visa, if one is required

  a valid visitor visa, if applicable

• The same passport used in the eTA application

  if you need an eTA, the same passport you used in your application

• US green card and a valid passport, for lawful permanent residents of the United StatesLeft unruled on purpose. VisaAI records a residence country, which is not the same thing as lawful permanent residence — someone can live in the US without a green card. Showing this item to everyone is the safe error; hiding it from a green-card holder is not.

  if you’re a lawful permanent resident of the United States (US), a valid green card (or equivalent official proof of status in the U S) and a valid passport from your country of nationality (or an equivalent document)

• Letters of support from your parent company and a letter of invitation from the Canadian host

  letters of support from your parent company, and a letter of invitation from the Canadian host business or a letter of recognition from the Canada Border Services Agency

• Warranty or service agreements, or contracts, if relevant to the visit

  other documents such as warranty or service agreements, or contracts, if relevant to your visit

• 24-hour contact details for your business host in Canada

  24-hour contact details of your business host in Canada

• Proof of funds covering the stay in Canada and the return home

  proof that you have enough money to cover both your stay in Canada and your return home

• Two originals of the letter of invitation — one to submit, one to present at entryIRCC addresses this page to the Canadian host company. Only the parts that change what the visitor must carry are recorded here; the letter's required contents are the host's obligation, not an applicant upload.

  Your company should send each visitor two originals of the letter of invitation, one for them to submit when applying for their visa and one to present when they enter Canada.

Steps in the process

• Find out whether you need a visitor visa or an eTA

  If you qualify as a business visitor, answer a few questions to find out what you may need to apply for, and which documents you’ll need to come to Canada.

• Get an event code from the organizer, if the event is registered with IRCCApplies only when a visitor visa is needed and the event is registered with IRCC. Left unruled because neither condition is a fact VisaAI holds.

  If you need a visitor visa to travel to Canada and your meeting, event or conference is registered with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), your organizer will provide you with an event code and instructions about how to apply for a visa.

Also stated by the authority

Not requirements in themselves. These are alternatives, exemptions, rights and warnings the authority publishes alongside the requirements — quoted here because they can change what applies to you.

• Some visa offices require the letter of invitation to be notarizedOffice-specific, so IRCC states it as a possibility rather than a rule. Recorded as not officially required because it is not universally imposed.

  Some visa offices may need these letters to be notarized. Contact the Canadian visa office of your visitor’s country to find out if this is required.