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Your visa stamp expired but your study permit is still valid: can you still fly back to Canada?

Canada • Study Permit • study 0 views
By VisaBuddies Communityvia community — compiled from public visa forums

Documents Needed

  • Temporary Resident Visa (TRV / visa stamp)

    A separate document from your study permit — you need a valid one to board a flight to Canada if you're a national from a visa-required country.

  • Study permit

    Being valid on its own is not enough to re-enter if your TRV/visa stamp has expired and you're outside Canada.

Step-by-Step

A member's friend went to India for a family emergency, but her visa stamp on her passport expired on 30 April 2022, even though her study permit remains valid until 30 November 2022 — she wasn't sure whether she could still fly back to Canada.

What the thread clarified:
  1. Your study permit and your visa stamp (TRV) are two separate documents, and both matter for re-entry. A valid study permit alone does not let you board a flight or re-enter Canada if your visa stamp has expired and you're currently outside the country.

  2. If the visa stamp has expired, you'll need to apply for a new visa at the relevant visa office (in this case, New Delhi) before you can travel back.

  3. The process typically requires your study permit extension (if applicable) to be resolved first, since the new visa application is generally tied to having a currently valid study permit or an approved extension in progress.


The practical takeaway: before traveling internationally while on a study permit, check both your visa stamp's expiry and your study permit's validity separately — a valid study permit does not substitute for an expired visa stamp, and you'll need to apply for a new visa at the appropriate visa office before you can fly back to Canada.

Dos, Don'ts & Tips

  • Tip: Check your visa stamp's expiry separately from your study permit's expiry before traveling internationally.
  • Don't: Don't assume a valid study permit alone is enough to board a flight if your visa stamp (TRV) has expired.
  • Do: Apply for a new visa at the appropriate visa office if your stamp has expired while you're outside Canada.

Have a question about this? Join the discussion.

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