• Travel and tourism is a fiercely competitive global industry where quality of experience, ease of access and price point determine advantage.

• Quality visitor experiences require a vibrant, well-trained work force. Canada's current available labour force is insufficient to meet the service standards demanded by international visitors to Canada.   

• Canada has the best airport infrastructure is the world but the burden of taxes, fees and levies imposed on the airfares results in over 6 million Canadians choosing US border airports annually.  

• Canada is the only country in the world that imposes the entire operational and security costs or air travel onto the travelling public distorting the cost of air travel to and within Canada by as much as 40%.

The expansion of the China Transit Program (CTP), a program that allows eligible Chinese travellers to fly to and transit through Canada visa-free when they are en route to and from the US, was recently announced by Minister Chris Alexander (Citizenship and Immigration) in Vancouver.

As of June 1, 2015, the program will expand to three additional major transit hubs - Tokyo Narita, Tokyo Haneda, and Seoul Incheon, which are in addition to Beijing, Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Manila and Taipei that are already part of the program.

This expansion means more choice and greater flexibility for eligible Chinese travellers to transit through Canada, and more business for participating airlines and Toronto Pearson and Vancouver International Airports, including additional revenue for airports through landing fees and spending by travellers.

Consultations with the air and tourism industries are ongoing as the government explores new opportunities for facilitating transit passengers through Canadian airports, particularly once the new Electronic Travel Authorization system is implemented next year. 

On June 4th, Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced the roll-out of biometric data (i.e. fingerprint) collection for all visa-required countries. This will put Canada in line with other G7 countries and will allow Canadian Border Services Agents to better verify the identities of legitimate travellers to Canada. These requirements are expected to be in place by 2018-2019.

The full briefing from the Government can be read here.

In consultation with the Committee on Citizenship and Immigration, TIAC has been working with the government to ensure that the roll-out of these changes will lead to minimal impact on travellers, including recommendations for continued reinvestment in and expansion of Visa Application Centres, expanding reciprocal visa agreements, and continuing to relax visa requirements for low-risk travellers.

What does this mean for the tourism industry in Canada?

• New Changes: Visitors from visa-required countries will need to apply in person for their visa, where designated VACs will take copies of their fingerprints and a photo as part of the application. There will be an additional fee of $85 for this data collection.
   
• US Visitors: Are exempt and will see no changes to their documentation requirements.
   
• Transiting Passengers: International passengers under the Transit Without Visa and China Transit Program will be exempt. Other passengers transiting through a Canadian airport to another country - and who are from visa-required countries - will still be required to obtain a visa and give their biometric information. 

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