The short answer: Australian citizens are not asked for a visitor visa for Canada, but they do need an eTA before boarding any flight to or through a Canadian airport. The fee is 7 CAD, most decisions arrive within minutes, and the authorization is tied to one passport. If you would rather have someone walk you through the form, get-eta.com is a private, paid service, not part of the Government of Canada, and you can apply for a Canada eTA.
This page is about the Canadian eTA for people holding an Australian passport who are flying to Canada. It is not about the Australian ETA, the permit Australia issues to Canadian visitors, which is a different document with different rules. Canada keeps Australia on its list of eTA-required countries, and the rule covers a change of planes in Vancouver or Toronto too, as explained in the guide to transit through Canada and the US.
Applying on canada.ca costs only the government fee. Anything you pay beyond 7 CAD is the price of someone’s help with the form.
Do Australians need a visa or an eTA for Canada?
An eTA, not a visa. Australia appears in Canada’s list of countries whose citizens fly in with an eTA and a valid passport, and a traveller needs one or the other, never both. A short trip for tourism, visiting family or a business meeting therefore starts with the eTA, not with an embassy appointment.
Some Australians are outside the rule. A person with Canadian citizenship as well travels on the Canadian passport, and the system will not issue that person an eTA. Canadian permanent residents do not need one, and neither do US green card holders. Everyone else who carries an Australian passport to a Canadian airport needs the authorization, children and babies included.
How much does the eTA cost when you pay from Australia?
The fee is 7 CAD per application, and it is not refunded if plans change or the application is turned down. Payment is by credit or debit card: Visa, Mastercard, American Express, UnionPay or JCB, and prepaid versions of the main brands work too. Your bank will convert the amount into Australian dollars at its own rate, so the charge on your statement will differ a little from day to day and your bank may add its own charges. It is not worth working out a dollar figure in advance, because the card statement is the only number that counts.
You will also need a valid passport and an email address. The form cannot be saved halfway, so it helps to have the passport beside you and to finish in one sitting. The wording of the form comes in two languages, English and French.
How long does approval take, and when should you apply?
Usually within minutes. Sometimes it takes up to several days, for example when the system asks for supporting documents. For that reason the sensible moment to apply is before you buy non-refundable tickets, not the night before the flight. A long-haul trip from Australia often involves fares that cannot be changed for free, and a delayed decision is a poor surprise once you have paid for them.
When the decision arrives you get an email. Nothing has to be printed, because the eTA is linked to your passport electronically. If you are waiting on a result, you can check your eTA status through a private, paid service that is not part of the Government of Canada; you will need your passport details and your application number or UCI.
Do you need an eTA if your flight connects in the US or Asia?
This is the question Australians ask most, because few flights from Australia reach Canada in one leg. The answer depends on where the last leg lands and how you travel after that.
Flying via Los Angeles, San Francisco, Honolulu or an Asian hub into Canada
If the final flight lands at a Canadian airport, you need an eTA, wherever you started. Treat it as a requirement to settle before you board the flight to Canada, and the simplest way to avoid trouble is to have it approved before you leave home. The United States has its own entry rules for travellers passing through, and they are a separate matter from the Canadian eTA. For the way airlines handle layovers and connections, see how layovers and connections are treated.
Flying into the US and then driving or taking the train to Canada
Arriving by car, bus, train or boat, an eTA is not needed in most cases. A valid passport still is, because it proves who you are at the border. The eTA only becomes necessary if a flight to Canada is part of the trip, for instance if you cross into Canada by road, leave, and later fly back into Canada on the same trip.
Transiting through Vancouver or Toronto to another country
Changing planes at a Canadian airport on the way to a third country counts as transit by air, and it requires an eTA. A train, bus or boat transit does not. There is no separate transit visa to worry about for Australians who hold the eTA.
How long can Australians stay in Canada on an eTA?
Visitors are normally allowed to remain as long as six months per trip, and the officer you meet at the border fixes the exact date. Once granted, the eTA lasts five years at most, or less if the passport runs out sooner, and it can be used for repeated short visits during that time. It does not promise entry: a border officer still checks you on arrival and can refuse.
Can you work in Canada on a Working Holiday with just an eTA?
No. An eTA does not give you the right to work or study. Australia takes part in the International Experience Canada programme, with Working Holiday, Young Professionals and International Co-op categories, and each of them is a separate application for a work permit. The Working Holiday category leads to an open work permit. If a work or study permit is approved, the eTA arrives with it on its own, so you do not file a second application. Age limits, stay lengths and quotas depend on your country and the current season, so read the current IEC eligibility page rather than relying on a summary.
Which passport should dual citizens use?
Australian and Canadian
Board with the Canadian passport; no eTA exists for you. Canadian citizens have to arrive with a valid Canadian passport, so the Australian one does not solve the question.
Australian and British, or another eTA country
The eTA belongs to one passport number. Submit the form with whichever passport will be in your hand at the check-in desk, since that is the document the airline scans. If you apply with your Australian passport and then fly on your British one, the authorization is attached to a different document from the one at the desk. Combinations with other nationalities are covered in the article on choosing a passport as a dual national.
Do Australian permanent residents or other Australian residents need an eTA?
Living in Australia decides nothing. The passport decides. A person who lives in Sydney on a passport from another country should look at the Canadian requirement for that nationality: some need a visitor visa, some need an eTA, some nothing at all. An Australian passport holder who lives abroad, on the other hand, still needs the eTA to fly to Canada.
Cruises, Alaska and arriving by sea
Arriving in Canada by sea, including on a cruise ship, does not call for an eTA, although you still need your passport. Things change if a flight is part of the plan. An Alaska cruise that leaves from Vancouver is a common example: if you fly to Vancouver to join the ship, that is a flight into Canada, and the eTA is required for it.
What changes if you renew your passport or travel with children?
When the passport is replaced, the old authorization stays attached to the old number and cannot be moved across. File a fresh application once the new booklet is in your hands, ideally before you book.
Each child needs an authorization of their own, and babies are not exempt. Every child gets a separate application. Minors travelling without both parents may be asked for a letter of consent from one or both of them, so it is worth carrying one.
The short version
- Australian passport holders need an eTA to fly to Canada and do not need a visitor visa.
- The fee is 7 CAD, non-refundable, charged to your card in Australian dollars at your bank’s rate.
- Approval is usually within minutes and can take several days, so apply before buying non-refundable tickets.
- A flight that lands in Canada, or changes planes there, needs the eTA; a land or sea arrival usually does not.
- A Working Holiday needs its own permit, and the eTA is issued automatically with it.
- Dual citizens apply with the passport they will fly on, and Canadian citizens fly on the Canadian passport.
- A replaced passport, or an extra child on the trip, means another application.
FAQ
How much is eTA for Canada from Australia? The fee is 7 CAD and it is not refundable. Your bank converts it to Australian dollars at its own rate.
How far in advance do you need to get an eTA for Canada? Approval usually comes within minutes, but it can take several days if documents are requested. Apply before you buy tickets, not just before the flight.
Do Australians need a transit visa for Canada? No. A visa is not required, but changing planes at a Canadian airport on the way to another country needs an eTA.
How long can Australians stay in Canada without a visa? Normally up to six months per trip, with the exact date fixed by the officer at the border. It does not promise entry, since the officer still checks you on arrival.
Do Australians need a visa for Canada if on a cruise? Arriving by sea needs no eTA, though your passport is required. If you fly into Canada to join the ship, the eTA is needed for that flight.