General information, not legal or immigration advice. For advice on your situation, consult a licensed RCIC or immigration lawyer.
What a TRV is
A Temporary Resident Visa (TRV) — everyday name: visitor visa — is the counterfoil placed in your passport that lets you travel to Canada and request entry. It is what an airline checks before you board.
What it is not is permission to stay for any particular length of time. That is a separate question, decided by the officer at the port of entry and governed afterwards by a Visitor Record.
The one-line version: a TRV gets you to the border. It does not decide what happens at the border, or how long you may stay after it.
TRV or eTA — which do you need?
Which document you need depends on your citizenship and how you are travelling:
- Visa-required nationals generally need a TRV.
- Visa-exempt nationals generally need an eTA (Electronic Travel Authorization) when flying to Canada.
- US citizens are treated differently again.
These lists change. Check yours directly:
→ canada.ca — find out if you need a visa or an eTA
Single entry vs multiple entry
A TRV may be issued as single entry or multiple entry. A multiple-entry visa lets you come and go for as long as the visa stays valid and you remain admissible; a single-entry visa is generally used up once you arrive.
The Super Visa is a specialised multiple-entry visa for parents and grandparents, with much longer permitted stays per visit — and its own insurance, medical-exam and host-income requirements.
A valid TRV does not guarantee entry
Worth stating plainly, because it is the source of a lot of anxiety and a lot of bad advice: no visa guarantees admission to Canada. A border services officer decides at the port of entry, every time. A valid TRV, an honest account of your plans, and a clean immigration history are what you can control.
This matters especially if you leave Canada while an extension application is pending — see Visitor Record for why that is risky.
Related tools & guides
- Visitor Record — extending how long you can stay, once you are in Canada
- Super Visa — the long-stay route for parents and grandparents
- Visiting Canada hub — how the three documents fit together
- Talk to a verified RCIC — for advice on a specific application
FAQ
Is a TRV the same as a visitor record?
No, and confusing the two causes real problems. A TRV is a visa in your passport that lets you travel to Canada and ask to enter. A Visitor Record is issued inside Canada and sets how long you may stay. You can hold a valid TRV and still be out of status, and you can hold a valid Visitor Record and still be refused re-entry.
Do I need a TRV or an eTA?
It depends on your citizenship and how you are travelling. Visa-required nationals generally need a TRV; visa-exempt nationals generally need an eTA when flying. Check the official country-by-country tool on canada.ca, since the lists change.
Does a valid TRV guarantee I can enter Canada?
No. A border services officer makes the admission decision at the port of entry each time you arrive. A visa lets you travel to Canada and present yourself; it does not bind the officer's decision.