Your eTA Application Was Refused: What to Do Next

An Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) is meant to be the simple, fast option — so it can be unsettling when yours comes back refused instead of approved. The good news is that a refusal is not usually the end of the road. The better news is that understanding why it happened generally points you toward the right next step.

This article walks through why eTAs get refused, what your realistic options are afterward, and when it's worth getting legal advice before you try again.

Why an eTA Gets Refused

An eTA application is screened against Canada's admissibility requirements, and a refusal generally means the system or an officer identified something that needs a closer look. Common categories include:

• Prior immigration history concerns — such as a past refusal, overstay, or removal from Canada or another country
• Criminal history — even matters that feel minor or long past can trigger inadmissibility screening
• Health-related concerns, in some circumstances
• Incomplete or inconsistent information on the application itself, including passport or biographical details that don't match official records
• A flag requiring manual review that could not be resolved through the automated system alone

Because the eTA system screens quickly, it can also route borderline cases toward a full assessment rather than approving them automatically — which sometimes results in a refusal even where the underlying issue is minor or fixable.

Your Options After a Refusal

1. Understand the specific reason before doing anything else. Reapplying blind, without knowing what triggered the refusal, often produces the same result.
2. Correct and reapply for an eTA, if the issue was a data error, an expired passport detail, or something else clearly fixable.
3. Apply for a visitor visa (TRV) instead. A TRV involves a more detailed application and generally allows an officer to consider more context than the streamlined eTA process does — which can work in your favour if your situation needs more explanation than the eTA form allows.
4. Address any underlying inadmissibility directly, if the refusal points to a deeper issue such as a past criminal or immigration matter, before applying again through any channel.
5. Consider a Temporary Resident Permit, in the right circumstances, if there's a genuine inadmissibility that a visitor visa alone won't resolve, and a compelling reason exists for you to travel despite it.

What Not to Do

• Don't reapply repeatedly without changing anything. Submitting the same information again is unlikely to produce a different result and can create a pattern that looks worse, not better.
• Don't omit or downplay the issue that caused the refusal on a later application. Inconsistent or incomplete disclosure can create a much more serious problem — misrepresentation — on top of the original issue.
• Don't assume a refusal for one document type means you're permanently barred from Canada. An eTA refusal and a formal inadmissibility finding are not automatically the same thing.
• Don't wait until days before travel to sort this out. A visitor visa application, in particular, takes longer than an eTA and should not be started at the last minute.

When to Get Legal Advice

Getting a lawyer involved is generally worthwhile when:

• [ ] You don't understand why the eTA was refused, even after reviewing the notice carefully
• [ ] The refusal appears connected to a past criminal or immigration issue
• [ ] You've been refused more than once
• [ ] You're on a tight timeline and need the most reliable option, not just the fastest one
• [ ] You're weighing a visitor visa versus a Temporary Resident Permit and aren't sure which fits your situation

Frequently asked questions