Study permit and moving with a child

[donovanjames]

Hey All,

I’m moving to Victoria with my family this summer to attend UVic on a study permit. My daughter is 4 and I have no idea if she needs a visa or not. I was told by UVic’s Int’l Studies that she just needs “visitor status,” as she is obviously not old enough to work nor study, but IDK what that means and they won’t clarify. On the visa questionnaire, it won’t let me proceed with using “visitor - travel” or “visitor - other” for her reason for coming. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[scylla]

Hey All,

I’m moving to Victoria with my family this summer to attend UVic on a study permit. My daughter is 4 and I have no idea if she needs a visa or not. I was told by UVic’s Int’l Studies that she just needs “visitor status,” as she is obviously not old enough to work nor study, but IDK what that means and they won’t clarify. On the visa questionnaire, it won’t let me proceed with using “visitor - travel” or “visitor - other” for her reason for coming. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

She will need either a TRV or ETA. Can't tell you which without knowing where you are from.

 

[canuck78]

If you need a TRV it would be TRV-other. You would also want the visitor record to match the end of your study permit. Something to remember when you land. Not too young to study there is junior kindergarten but only need a TRV for that.

 

[donovanjames]

Thanks for the info! I’m from Oregon, USA and I will be in Canada for 2.5 years.

 

[scylla]

Thanks for the info! I’m from Oregon, USA and I will be in Canada for 2.5 years.

In that case she can enter Canada as a tourist using her passport only. You will need to apply to extend her status every six months to keep her visitor status valid in Canada. Make sure you remember to do this. We've seen a few cases here recently where people have brought young children to Canada under similar circumstances and then forgotten to extend their status as required (making it difficult to get health care coverage for the child, go to school, etc.).

 

[donovanjames]

In that case she can enter Canada as a tourist using her passport only. You will need to apply to extend her status every six months to keep her visitor status valid in Canada. Make sure you remember to do this. We've seen a few cases here recently where people have brought young children to Canada under similar circumstances and then forgotten to extend their status as required (making it difficult to get health care coverage for the child, go to school, etc.).

So the TRV and visitor record aren’t required if she has a passport? Then do we just omit her from our visa apps? I did mention my situation in my letter of explanation for my own study permit visa app. Thanks again!

 

[21Goose]

So the TRV and visitor record aren’t required if she has a passport? Then do we just omit her from our visa apps? I did mention my situation in my letter of explanation for my own study permit visa app. Thanks again!

US citizens don't need a TRV or an ETA to enter Canada. You can omit her from your visa application - well, obviously you will say that you have a daughter in the Family Information form, but you don't need to apply for a visa for her separately.

 

[canuck_in_uk]

Thanks for the info! I’m from Oregon, USA and I will be in Canada for 2.5 years.

When you enter Canada, ask CBSA for a Visitor Record for your child to match the expiry of your study permit.

 

[donovanjames]

Fantastic! Thank you so much. I’ve been scouring the Internet and getting so much conflicting data from gov websites.