Foreign Affairs Minister E.P Chet Greene says while the ultimate goal is to enter into a visa-free agreement with the government of Canada, the Gaston Browne-led administration appreciates the initial step

A number of Antigua and Barbuda passport holders are now eligible to benefit from visa-free travel to Canada after the country announced the latest additions to its electronic travel authorization (eTA) program.

The announcement was made by Canada’s Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Sean Fraser, during a press conference early Tuesday.

It means that effective Tuesday, June 6, Antigua and Barbuda nationals who have either held a Canadian visa within the last ten years or who currently hold a valid US non-immigrant visa, can now apply for an eTA instead of a visa when traveling to the country specifically by air, according to a statement from the Canadian government

“There has never been a meeting with the Canadians in which I did not introduce the subject of making it easier for our citizens to travel to Canada. It was pretty burdensome for our citizens to travel to obtain visas and then having to bear the extra costs of traveling to Canada, their destination of choice” Greene said

According to him, this newly extended regime will also facilitate business people and students who have demonstrated a preference to travel to Canada.

“I am indeed thankful and commend my diplomatic staffers who have stayed the course in getting us to this point. We are very glad that our efforts have borne fruit and that this burden has been lifted for many hundreds of Antiguans and Barbudans,” the minister said.

“Applying for an eTA is done on the Internet, requiring no travel expenses. Introducing visa-free air travel will make it faster, easier, and more affordable for Antigua and Barbuda nationals to visit Canada for up to six months for either business or leisure,” the Canadian government added.