Canada removes visas for Romanians

The Canadian Government has decided to remove visas for all Romanians travelling to Canada starting December 1, 2017. The Romanians who have had a Canadian temporary resident visa in the past 10 years and those who have a valid US non-imigrant visa will be able to go to Canada without visas starting May 1, 2017. The decision was announced yesterday in a press release from the Romanian Government. Romania and Canada reached an agreement on removing visas a week ago, but the Canadian Government’s decision was conditioned by the signing of the free trade agreement between the European Union and Canada (CETA). The agreement was signed on Sunday. “It is an important moment for Romania, not only because it opens the access of Romanians to the benefits of the Commercial Treaty between the European Union and Canada (CETA), but also because it removes the last discrimination existing for Romanian citizens compared to other EU citizens in the issue of movement without barriers within Canada,” said Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos. A press release from the Romanian Government showed that the decision was made following “internal talks” between the Romanian Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos and the Canadian PM Justin Trudeau. President: Romania will try to get Canada to drop visas even without CETA editor@romania-insider.com