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Diana Tristan

Requirements to enter Canada by submitting an application through a Port of Entry

There are specific requirements for all applicants that you must meet depending on where you are located when you apply for your work permit.


But regardless of where you apply or the type of work permit you apply for, you must:

  • Demonstrate to an official that you will leave Canada when your work permit expires.

  • Prove that you have enough money to take care of yourself and your family members during their stay in Canada and to return to your country.

  • Obey the law and have no criminal record (we may ask you to provide a criminal record certificate).

  • Not be a danger to the security of Canada.

  • Be in good health and undergo a medical examination, if necessary.

  • Not plan to work for an employer who is listed as “ineligible” on the list of employers who have failed to meet the conditions.

  • Not plan to work for an employer who regularly offers striptease, lap dancing, escort services or erotic massages.

  • Provide the officer with any other documents he or she may ask you to provide to prove that you can enter the country.


border inspection signal in Canada

There are three ways to apply: outside Canada, within Canada and when entering through a Port of Entry.


Here we will review what are the requirements to enter Canada if you apply through a Port of Entry.

The first thing to do is to apply for your work permit before you travel to Canada.


However, you can apply for a work permit upon entering Canada if you meet the requirements.


To apply at a Port of Entry (POE), you must meet all of the following requirements:


  • Be eligible for an electronic travel authorization or to travel without a visitor's visa.

  • Meet other requirements depending on the type of work permit you are applying for.

Applicants for company-specific work permits

Your employer must have completed all required steps for your specific work permit.


Open work permit applicants

You must be eligible to apply for an open work permit.


You may also have to undergo a medical examination before coming to Canada.


Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program

If you will be working in the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program, you cannot apply for a work permit at a point of entry.


Biometric Data

Most applicants cannot present their biometric data at a point of entry.


To present your biometric data at a point of entry, you must meet two requirements:

  • Start and finish your application at the same point of entry.

  • Be eligible to apply for a work permit at a point of entry.


road port of entry green signal


Eligible applicants can submit their biometric data at these entry points:


Alberta

  • Calgary International Airport

  • Carway

  • Coutts

  • Edmonton International Airport

British Columbia

  • Abbotsford

  • Aldergrove

  • Boundary Bay

  • Douglas

  • Kelowna Airport

  • Kingsgate

  • Osoyoos

  • Pacific Highway

  • Roosville

  • Vancouver International Airport

  • Victoria Ferry/Belleville

  • Victoria International Airport

Manitoba

  • Boissevain

  • Emerson

  • Sprague

  • Winnipeg Airport

New Brunswick

  • Edmunston

  • Moncton Airport

  • St. Stephen 3rd Bridge

Newfoundland and Labrador

  • Ferry Point

  • St. John's International Airport

Nova Scotia

  • Halifax International Airport

  • Yarmouth

Ontario

  • Ambassador Bridge

  • Blue Water Bridge

  • CBSA Toronto City Centre Airport (TCCA)

  • Cornwall

  • Fort Frances

  • Hamilton Airport

  • Lansdowne

  • London Airport

  • Ottawa International Airport

  • Peace Bridge

  • Pearson International Airport (Terminal 1)

  • Pearson International Airport (Terminal 3)

  • Pigeon River

  • Prescott

  • Queenston

  • Rainbow Bridge

  • Rainy River

  • Sault Ste. Marie

  • Windsor Tunnel

  • Woodstock

Quebec

  • Armstrong

  • Pierre Elliott Trudeau Airport

  • Quebec City International Airport

  • St-Armand

  • St-Bernard-De-Lacolle

  • Stanstead

Saskatchewan

  • Fortune

  • North Portal

  • Regina Airport

  • Saskatoon Airport

Yukon

  • Whitehorse Airport (Erik Nielsen Whitehorse)


It is extremely important to remember that citizens who do not require a visa, only an eTA, are still eligible to apply at the port of entry but cannot do Flag Pole*, i.e., they need to leave the country, or if they have an American visa, leave to the US and apply upon re-entry.


You must also have all your application documents complete, verify what times and days the Port of Entry processes Work Permits on land and that all your documents are in English or French.


*A term given to the action of changing immigration status at the Canada-U.S. border.

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