Until now, applying for a Canadian eTA has mostly meant completing an online form manually. But Canadian authorities are now considering a technical change that could eventually alter, in a very concrete way, how travelers complete their applications.
The document published yesterday by IRCC (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada) does not, at this stage, create a new requirement that would immediately apply to travelers, whether they are visa-exempt or not. Rather, it is a regulatory initiative added to the department’s “Forward regulatory plan: 2026-2028”, with proposed amendments to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations.
The direction is now clear: Canada intends to integrate “digital capture” technology into several processes, including the electronic travel authorization (eTA) and the temporary resident visa.
According to the text, this digital capture would allow for the “remote collection of clients’ passport information” in order to automatically populate applications, reduce data-entry errors, and authenticate passports “at time of application.” IRCC also notes that the system would need to work for different applicant profiles, depending, for example, on whether the traveler holds an electronic passport.
For travelers, the benefit could be real. By reducing data-entry mistakes in the eTA application, such technology could help prevent very concrete problems, such as boarding denials caused by inconsistent information or difficulties during border checks.
A new step in the evolution of Canada’s eTA
Today, the eTA application process remains relatively simple: the applicant must have their passport on hand, complete the online form, and pay the 7 Canadian dollar fee. The official portal does not, as part of its standard process, require applicants to systematically upload a copy of their passport, although some applicants may later be asked to provide additional documents.
This new direction did not come out of nowhere. In July 2025, another IRCC regulatory initiative, previously highlighted by VisasNews, suggested a possible expansion in the collection and use of biometric data for certain immigration programs, with the idea of introducing a new biometric requirement for visa-exempt travelers applying for an eTA.
The new element being highlighted today is of a different nature, however. The text published this week does not, for now, concern the traveler’s photo, a selfie, or an explicit facial capture, unlike the U.S., which has already made the selfie part of the ESTA process and recently tightened its controls around it. Instead, it focuses on passport data and on how that information could be collected remotely to make the application more reliable and more automated.
Toward uploading a passport copy directly on the eTA portal…
The first possibility, and likely the simplest to implement, would be the addition of a step asking travelers to upload or capture the identity page of their passport directly on the eTA portal. Such a change would allow the system to automatically read the information shown on the document, particularly the data contained in the MRZ, and then pre-fill certain parts of the form without relying entirely on manual entry.
IRCC does not explicitly spell out this scenario, but it aligns very closely with the stated goal of remotely collecting passport data and authenticating the document at the time of application. On the one hand, it would reduce typing errors that can complicate the processing of an application or create discrepancies between the information declared by the traveler and the information actually shown on the passport. On the other, it would strengthen traveler identification by relying more directly on the document itself.
IRCC also notes that the air carriers consulted supported this direction, believing that more accurate data collection could “cut down on instances where an individual may have a typo on their visa or eTA and are unable to board a flight.”
…or the creation of a dedicated app for eTAs and temporary visas
The other, more far-reaching scenario would be the development of a mobile app dedicated to the eTA, or more broadly to temporary resident visas and other short-stay travel procedures.
Under such a model, the traveler’s phone could become the primary passport-reading tool: visual capture of the biographic page, automatic extraction of the data using NFC technology, and, depending on the case, different pathways for holders of electronic passports and those without them. Here again, IRCC does not explicitly refer to a future app, but the technical logic described in the document leaves that possibility open.
Such a development would be consistent with what is already being seen in other travel authorization and pre-screening systems.
IRCC itself explains that “the U.S., UK, Australia, New Zealand, and soon the European Union – have comparable requirements.” Canada therefore appears to be moving toward international standards in which identity verification increasingly relies on digital tools and on the travel document itself.
Officially, IRCC presents this reform as a way to improve data quality, decision integrity, and identity management processes. But the department also acknowledges that this digital capture would create an additional step, along with potential added costs, for foreign nationals applying for a visa or travel authorization to Canada, including eTA applicants.
Canada’s tourism industry may also be concerned about the effect such changes could have on some visitors’ decision to travel to the country.
That is the real challenge behind this possible next step: making the eTA more reliable without stripping away what has long been one of its main strengths, a process that is fast, lightweight, largely digital, and affordable.
