Oh Boy, this is a tough one. The only way I would buy a return ticket, in hind sight, is to get one that is fully refundable. Yes, they are more expensive, but think of it as insurance. In our experience, it was of no value to have the return ticket, but if you wanted to buy the refundable one you could do so, get the visa, refund the ticket and buy the economy ticket you need. The date on the visa is usually valid for 6 months, but that is 6 months from the time you enter the country, not from the date on the visa. The officer is not bound to allow the visitor to stay for the full 6 months either. I now think the best bet is to travel with a tour group and have no friends/relatives/etc to visit. Come purely as a visitor with no ties to the country. Have a good reason to visit the country. Time it around some event like the Calgary Stampede or Anne of Green Gables, whatever tourist draw there is where you live. Make sure that the links to Serbia are strong - as previously mentioned, evidence of holiday time from work and a job to return to, history of travel out and back to home country. Some of this seems wrong, not to admit that you have a friend you want to show off your country to, someone who may have just the skillset that Canada requires who will come here and think, WOW, this is great, how do I immigrate? You just have to make a decision to do what you think is best and I wish you all the luck in the world!