NEED TO ATTEND CONFERENCE AT MONTREAL, on F1 visa for USA, residing at USA now

[RUSTYROCKETS]

Hi all,

Im a Graduate student at a university in USA, I am going to present a paper at conference held at Montreal,
I am on a F1 visa in United States, I have to travel to canada for about a week.
Could you guys suggest what VISA do i apply for, and the best way for me would be online as Im in a remote place right now in USA.
And also if I apply online, how do I send the PASSPORT for VISA stamping, and where, I have questions troubling me.
Please help me in this regards.

Thanks & Regards

 

[humdrumdum]

Hi, I think you need to apply for a Visitor's Visa. More info about it here: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/visit/tourist.asp
You would also need to present a Letter of Invitation from the conference organisers to make your visit official and more convincing.

I'm not too sure of the online application process as I have never tried it, but as far as I know, CIC will only request your passport for stamping once they have approved your application. If you will apply within the US, it's likely that you will be asked to send it to the nearest Canadian embassy or visa office. I am sure they will provide instructions once you have applied.

 

[RUSTYROCKETS]

thanks for the reply,


So How do i send the passport, i mean how do people usually do it, do i use USPS ,courier services is it safe.

And yes i have a letter of invitation and another question is for supporting documents they are asking a travel iternary , I have not booked the tickets yet, so how do i do it?


Thanks & REgards

 

[humdrumdum]

It varies from country to country, and I am not familiar with how it is in the US. Usually the Canadian Embassy will have an official courier and you will be the one to coordinate for a pick-up. I am sure they will provide detailed instructions when they issue a Passport Request.

The letter of invitation is more important, as the other supporting documents are optional. You can provide a tentative itinerary just for application purposes.

 

[RUSTYROCKETS]

yes, I have the letter of invitation
and temporary itenary do you mean AIR tickets? how do i do it,

Thanks

 

[humdrumdum]

You can just make a simple time table, outlining your proposed schedule during your stay. It doesn't have to be final or anything, as long as they have an idea what you will be doing in Montreal.

For example, you put there on Day 1, you plan to arrive at Montreal via this flight from the US, and you will check-in at this hotel at 4pm. On Day 2, you can indicate that the event starts at 9am and you will have a talk at this hour.

It doesn't have to be detailed, it is tentative after all. Usually this is the procedure for Japanese tourist visas but I guess it can help you. What's important is to complete all the requirements specified on the CIC website. Goodluck!

 

[RUSTYROCKETS]

thank you very much