Canada adds Thailand, Philippines to list of eligible countries for visa-free entry

By Hoang Phong June 7, 2023 | 05:07 pm PT

A United States-bound passenger walks in Toronto Pearson Airport's Terminal 3 in Ontario, Canada December 3, 2021. Photo by Reuters

The Canadian government on Tuesday announced the addition of 13 countries, including Thailand and the Philippines, in its list of visa-free travel in an effort to boost tourism.

In addition to the two Southeast Asian countries, the list also included Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Costa Rica, Morocco, Panama, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Seychelles, Trinidad and Tobago, and Uruguay, the Star newspaper reported.

Visitors from these countries are no longer required to have visitor visas and only need electronic travel authorization (eTA) so long as they hold either a Canadian visa in the past 10 years or currently have a valid United States non-immigrant visa.

To apply for an eTA, travelers need only a valid passport, a credit card, and an email address.

A visitor visa currently costs $100 per person and $500 for a family of five or more, but an eTA costs just $7 per person and is valid for as long as five years.

Canada traditionally relied on data and benchmarks to determine if a country should be exempt from visa requirements.

Thailand currently waives visas for citizens from 64 countries, including Canada, while citizens from 157 countries do not need a visa to enter the Philippines for a stay of 14-59 days.