Breaking News! Worldway Immigration Group brings you the latest updates: According to the latest news from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), starting this year, applicants for Canadian visitor visas, including work permits, tourist visas, or study permits, are required to provide biometrics (fingerprints and photos).
Specifically, this will be implemented in two phases. Starting July 31, 2018, applicants for Canadian visas in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa will be required to provide biometric information. For those in Asia, the Asia-Pacific region, and the Americas, this requirement begins on December 31, 2018. If a visa applicant is already within Canada, they are not required to provide biometric information until the visa service centers are established. Visa service centers within Canada are expected to be established in early 2019.
In other words, for individuals currently in China, applying for a Canadian visa after December 31 of this year (i.e., 2019) will require fingerprinting and photography. Before the end of the year, Canadian visas can still be processed according to the previous methods.
Note: The biometric information of each applicant is valid for ten years, meaning it must be updated every ten years. If it exceeds 10 years, the visa applicant must update their information at a service center.
Application Fees:
1. The new visa application fee (including fingerprinting) is 85 CAD per person (approximately 425 RMB).
2. For families (two or more people), the fee is 170 CAD (approximately 850 RMB).
3. The maximum fee for groups of three or more is 255 CAD (approximately 1,275.00 RMB).
*This fee only covers the visa service fee and does not include other service items such as photocopying or photo fees.
Application Process:
Step 1: Visit the Visa Application Center in person;
Step 2: Bring the required documents, including:
Original passport
Payment of fees
Letter from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (if applicable);
It should be noted that the Canadian government has established Canadian Visa Application Centers since 2013. Currently, in mainland China, only the four visa centers in Beijing, Chongqing, Guangzhou, and Shanghai can provide fingerprint collection services.
If a visa applicant needs to provide biometric information, they must go to one of the four cities mentioned above or to Hong Kong for an in-person appointment.
Additionally, biometric collection does not apply to all Canadian visa applicants. According to the regulations published by the immigration authorities, besides U.S. citizens, the following individuals are exempt from providing fingerprints and photos:
Canadian citizens, permanent residents, and Canadian citizenship applicants (passport applicants);
Children under 14 years of age or seniors over 79 years of age;
Holders of Electronic Travel Authorizations (eTA);
Heads of state and heads of government;
Cabinet ministers from other countries and the United Nations;
Diplomats accredited to Canada for official business;
U.S. visa holders transiting through Canada;
Refugee claimants;
Protected persons applying for study or work permits;
Temporary residents with permanent resident status applications still in progress, etc.
In fact, it is not difficult to see that after December 31 of this year, applying for Canadian tourist, study, and work visas will no longer be as simple; at the very least, your application costs will increase significantly, and the application process will become more complex. Therefore, experts from Worldway Immigration Group advise all investors to apply for visas early, and to seize the opportunity for immigration even more urgently! Since the Canadian government launched the "Million New Immigrants Plan," the golden period for investing and immigrating to Canada has arrived. With an investment starting from as low as 150,000 CAD, you can enjoy the generous medical, educational, and other benefits of a major immigration country!
As a top 500 Asian brand and a leading institution in the investment immigration industry, Worldway Immigration Group offers high-quality Canadian immigration projects, including the Quebec Immigrant Investor Program, which has a low threshold and provides a Maple Leaf Card in one step; the Saskatchewan Entrepreneur Program and Manitoba Entrepreneur Program, which allow for quick entry; as well as the Prince Edward Island Provincial Nominee Program and New Brunswick Entrepreneurial Stream, which provide a Maple Leaf Card in one step. We help investors realize their dreams of immigrating to Canada and establishing a second home overseas. For details, please call: 400-138-2929.