Canadians Requiring Visas
In almost all circumstances, Canadian citizens do not require visitor, business, transit or other visas to enter the United States, either from Canada or from other countries. However, some exceptions exist:
- treaty traders (requires E Visa)
- foreign citizen fiancé(e)s (K-1 Visa), as well as the fiancé(e)'s children (K-2 Visa)
- a U.S. citizen's foreign citizen spouse traveling to reside in the U.S. while awaiting final completion of the process of immigration (K-3 Visa), as well as the spouse's children (K-4 Visa)
- spouses of lawful permanent residents (V-1 Visas), as well as the spouse's children who are traveling to reside in the U.S. while awaiting final completion of the process of immigration (V-2 Visas)
- non-immigrants travelling to the United States for work (Non-Immigrant Visas), including:
- foreign government officials (A Visas), if entering the U.S. for temporary or permanent assignment
- officials and employees of international organizations (G Visas), if entering the U.S. for temporary or permanent assignment
- NATO officials, representatives, and employees, only if they are being assigned to the U.S. (as opposed to an official trip)
Additionally, Canadians with any sort of criminal record, including drunk driving, should review this page regarding Criminal Ineligibility.
If you believe you fall under one of these categories, you will need to apply for a visa. In order to begin this process, and to find out more information, please visit canada.usvisa-info.com.
Machine Readable Passports
Canadian visitors require a Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI)-compliant document for all land, sea and air entries. Unlike some other nationalities, however, as a Canadian your passport need not be valid beyond the duration of your planned trip to the U.S. and it does not need to be machine-readable. Please visit GetYouHome.gov for more information on the WHTI.