Travel Visas

Visa Information

A detailed list of entry requirements by country can be found here. In summary:
  • US citizens may travel to Canada without a visa or Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA).
  • Citizens of most European (and many other) countries may travel to Canada without a visa but must obtain online an Electronic Travel Authorization. This costs $7 CAD. The advice from the Canadian Government is “Be prepared: Apply for an eTA before you book your flight to Canada. Most applicants get approved within minutes. However, some applications can take several days to process so don’t wait until the last minute”.
  • Citizens of other nations require a Canadian Travel Visa. Canada does not have a visa office in every country so it is important that participants visit the website of the visa office responsible for processing their visa application for information on how to submit a visa application. A list of visa offices and the countries they serve is found here.

Visa Application Centers

In some countries Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) has engaged the services of a private service provider to assist individuals applying for CIC services. Visa Application Centres (VACs) agents are available to help applicants fill out their forms and answer questions about the application process. They ensure applications are complete, which reduces the rate of returned applications and ultimately leads to faster processing. The VAC sends applications to Visa offices and transmits decisions to applicants in a confidential manner. VACs play no role in the decision-making process. The use of VAC services is completely optional. Applicants can continue to apply directly to the visa office if they prefer.

Processing time for visas vary depending on the office and the time of the year. Participants are encouraged to apply early for their visa, if one is required.

Invitation Letters

If you are an author of a paper/poster to be presented at WINE and would like a letter of invitation for your visa application, please email the conference chairs.