Immigration
The Visiting International Research Student (VIRS) Program is considered full-time studies for which accepted students will be engaged in research under the supervision of a UBC faculty member. Furthermore, the research a student will engage in forms a student-institution relationship and not an employment relationship with UBC.
You cannot begin your research without appropriate immigration documents and legal status.
As noted on the Application Step-by-Step guide, here are some tips on required immigration documents.
- Six (6) months or less = students can complete their research under visitor status with a Temporary Resident Visa or Electronic Travel Authorization, depending on citizenship.
- Longer than six (6) months = students will require a study permit in which you will need to upload your LoA and a PAL, the latter you will have to request from UBC.
- See how to apply for an initial study permit, and see processing times for various immigration document applications on the Government of Canada website.
Find out which document you need by completing this online questionnaire. If you are applying for a study permit from outside of Canada, you do not need to apply separately for a Temporary Resident Visa (TRV) or Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA). These are required to enter Canada as a temporary resident and depending on your country of citizenship/nationality, you will either need a TRV or eTA, but not both.
If you have questions about immigration documents, please contact VIRS Advising. Make sure to identify yourself as a VIRS student, and include your UBC student number, your country of citizenship, and the length of time of your VIRS studies. If you are refused by Canadian immigration, please contact us immediately and we will work with our UBC immigration advisors to review your case and inform you of your options.
