Visiting Canada from the UK: What You Need in 2026

Do UK Citizens Need a Visa for Canada?

No. British citizens are exempt from the requirement to obtain a Temporary Resident Visa under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (IRPR) s.190(1)(b). That visa exemption applies however you arrive, by air, land, or sea. It is the reason you will never find a "Canadian visa for UK citizens" application to fill in for an ordinary holiday: the thing you actually apply for is an eTA, and only when you fly.

Entry Requirements for UK Citizens: eTA by Air, Passport by Land

The requirement depends entirely on how you travel. IRCC splits it into three cases:

Which British Nationality Classes Are eTA-Eligible

This is the part that goes wrong most often, because "UK passport holder" and "eTA-eligible" are not the same set. IRCC lists these British classes as eTA-required (meaning visa-exempt, eTA when flying):

• ✓ British citizen
• ✓ British National (Overseas)
• ✓ British overseas citizen who is re-admissible to the United Kingdom
• ✓ British overseas territory citizen, where citizenship comes through birth, descent, naturalization, or registration in Anguilla, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands (Malvinas), Gibraltar, Montserrat, Pitcairn Island, Saint Helena, or Turks and Caicos Islands
• ✓ British subject with a right of abode in the United Kingdom

The underlying regulations split these into two different mechanisms, which matters if your case is unusual. IRPR s.190(1)(b) exempts British citizens, British overseas citizens re-admissible to the UK, and British overseas territory citizens from the listed territories on the basis of their nationality. British Nationals (Overseas) and British subjects are exempted instead on the basis of the document they hold: IRPR s.190(2)(e) covers a UK passport issued to a British National (Overseas) as a person born, naturalized, or registered in Hong Kong, and s.190(2)(e.1) covers a UK passport issued to a British subject that contains the observation that the holder has the right of abode in the United Kingdom. What this means for you: if you hold anything other than a straightforward British citizen passport, check the exact wording in your passport against the IRCC list before you book, because the exemption may attach to that specific document rather than to you.

The eTA Itself: CAD $7, Five Years, Tied to One Passport

An eTA costs CAD $7 and you can only apply and pay for one person at a time. To complete the form you need your passport, a credit card, and an email address. Most applicants get approval by email within minutes, but some requests take several days if you are asked to submit supporting documents, which is why IRCC advises getting an eTA before you book your flight rather than after. Apply only on the official Government of Canada website; commercial sites charge a markup for the same CAD $7 authorization.

An eTA is valid for up to five years or until your passport expires, whichever comes first. If you get a new passport, you need a new eTA. Because it is electronically linked to one specific passport, the single most common mistake is entering the wrong passport number: IRCC tells applicants to use the number at the top of the passport information page, the page with your photo, and to check that the number in your approval email matches your passport. If they do not match, you have to apply for a new eTA. You must then present that same passport when you check in for your flight to Canada.

UK Criminal Records: The Wrinkle Nobody Expects

Being visa-exempt does not exempt you from the inadmissibility provisions of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA). Under IRPA s.36, a foreign national can be inadmissible for having been convicted of, or having committed, an offence outside Canada that would be an offence under an Act of Parliament if it had been committed in Canada. The test is Canadian equivalency: what matters is how the equivalent offence is treated under Canadian law, not how seriously the UK treated it.

The two things that catch British travellers hardest are these. First, a conviction that is "spent" under the UK Rehabilitation of Offenders Act is not automatically wiped for Canadian immigration purposes, so a record you consider closed at home can still be assessed. Second, drink-driving is the classic trap: Canada modernized its impaired-driving offences effective December 18, 2018 (now Criminal Code s.320.14), and because impaired operation prosecuted by indictment now carries a maximum of up to 10 years, a single drink-driving conviction can be treated as serious criminality for immigration purposes.

Other UK convictions that commonly raise inadmissibility questions at the Canadian border include:

• ✗ Drink-driving or drug-driving convictions
• ✗ Drug offences, including possession
• ✗ Theft, fraud, or other dishonesty offences
• ✗ Assault, public order, or domestic abuse convictions
• ✗ Offensive weapons offences
• ✗ Any previous refusal of entry or immigration breach, in any country

The eTA application asks about criminal history, and answering it inaccurately is its own problem: a misrepresentation finding under IRPA s.40 carries a separate inadmissibility that is harder to resolve than the original record. Routes to resolve criminal inadmissibility generally include deemed rehabilitation, Criminal Rehabilitation, or a Temporary Resident Permit, and which applies depends on the offence, the Canadian equivalent, and how long ago you completed your sentence. Our UK criminal record guide walks through the specifics, and the free Admissibility Explorer helps you see which questions apply to you. For advice on your own record, speak to a Canadian immigration lawyer or a consultant licensed by the CICC.

Visiting Is Not Working or Studying

A visitor is admitted to visit. The eTA does not carry any right to take a job or enrol in a long programme. Many UK travellers assume the visa-free relationship goes further than it does.

What to Bring and What CBSA Will Ask

Every person entering Canada is assessed at the port of entry. A British passport and an approved eTA get you to the officer; the conversation determines the rest. It helps to be able to show:

• ✓ A valid passport, and the same passport your eTA is linked to if you flew
• ✓ Where you are staying, with bookings or an address if you have them
• ✓ How long you intend to stay and when you are leaving
• ✓ A return or onward ticket
• ✓ Reasonable access to funds for your visit (there is no published fixed amount)
• ✓ Ties to the UK such as a job, studies, a home, or family
• ✓ Documentation about any past conviction or refusal, if you have one

Answer truthfully. Misrepresentation is a separate ground of inadmissibility under IRPA s.40, and inconsistent or evasive answers can lead to a secondary examination, a shorter authorized stay, or refusal of entry. Being nervous is normal and is not a problem; being vague about why you are here is.

Stay Length, Health Cover, and Money

Frequently Asked Questions