What it means to be inadmissible

Some people aren’t allowed to come to Canada. They’re “inadmissible” under Canada’s immigration law.

A Canadian immigration officer will decide if you can enter Canada when you:

apply for a visa or an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) or

when you arrive at a port of entry.

There are different reasons we may not let you into Canada, such as security, criminal or medical reasons.

If you’re inadmissible to Canada

Normally, if you’re inadmissible to Canada, you won’t be allowed to enter the country. If you have a valid reason to travel to Canada that is justified in the circumstances, we may issue you a temporary resident permit.

If you’ve committed or been convicted of a crime, you have a few options to overcome your criminal inadmissibility.

Penalties for driving while impaired

If you drive while impaired by alcohol or drugs, including cannabis, you may be inadmissible for serious criminality. This means:

you won’t be able to enter or stay in Canada unless we issue you a temporary resident permit

you’ll have to pay the CAN$200 processing fee for the permit and there’s no guarantee you’ll be allowed to enter or stay in the country

Find out more about the new penalties.