Citizenship and Immigration Canada has announced a policy decision to promote the use of long-term multiple-entry visas. For foreign nationals engaged in ongoing business activities in Canada, and who officials accept as genuine temporary residents of Canada, the goal of this policy is to facilitate such business activity without the need for repeated single-entry visa applications.

The policy permits issuance of a multiple-entry visa for a maximum duration of the validity of the candidate’s passport less one month. Depending on the normal passport validity of an issuing country, this means that the normal maximum validity will be up to 59 months (just under 5 years), although in some cases it could be as much as 119 months (just under 10 years).

An entry visa permits the foreign national to appear at a Canadian port of entry to seek admission. The maximum duration of such admission on any given occasion is subject to the discretion of the Canada Border Services Agency official.