Certain foreign nationals may be eligible to transit through Canada without a visa if they:
- are citizens of Indonesia, Thailand, Taiwan or the Philippines;
- hold a passport or travel document of the country of which they are a citizen;
- hold a valid U.S. visa;
- travel on an approved airline; and
- transit through a participating Canadian international airport.
In order to be eligible for the Transit Without Visa (TWOV) Program, airlines must meet specific criteria, including the following:
- meet all requirements to fly into Canada and to operate in Canadian airspace;
- fly to a TWOV-approved airport;
- have access to U.S. in-transit pre-clearance (USITPC) facilities at the airport or to a sterile transit area for Fifth Freedom Right flights;
- hold a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) that is in good standing, as per section 280 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (this MOU outlines the requirements for transporting passengers to Canada);
- sign a TWOV Program MOU with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada and the CBSA.
Note: To exercise the Fifth Freedom Right, the airline’s home country must have obtained the necessary Fifth Freedom Right in its air agreements with both the bilateral partner country and the third country involved. For more information, contact Transport Canada.
Currently, the following airlines are eligible to transport passengers under the TWOV Program:
- Air Canada
- Air Canada Rouge
- Air China
- Air Georgian
- Cathay Pacific
- China Eastern Airlines
- China Southern Airlines
- Hainan Airlines
- Jazz Aviation LP
- Philippine Airlines
- Sky Regional Airlines Inc.
- West Jet
- XiamenAir
Current Canadian airport participants
At present, the TWOV Program operates at the following airports:
- Vancouver International Airport in British Columbia
- Calgary International Airport in Alberta
- Winnipeg International Airport in Manitoba
- Toronto Pearson International Airport (Terminal 1 only) in Ontario
Note: A change of terminal between flights in the Toronto Pearson International Airport does not qualify as a condition of the TWOV Program.
Please Contact Us for more information.