As of March 15, many travelers were supposed to obtain an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) before flying to Canada. However, according to a communication issued by Immigration Canada on March 3, while travelers are still expected to apply for an eTA (where one is required), the obligation to actually produce the eTA before flying to Canada will not be enforced until later in 2016. 
The reason for this transition period is that the rule requiring commercial carriers to verify eTAs before allowing individuals to board a plane to Canada will not come into force until later this year. For now, Canadian border agents will not require the production of eTAs from individuals who are otherwise required to possess them. Thus, the original March 15 deadline appears to have become a “soft deadline.”
Review of the eTA requirement
The requirement to have an eTA applies to citizens of visa-exempt countries who are coming to Canada by air, with the exception of U.S. citizens. In other words, visitors who are citizens of countries for which a visa is required must still go through a visa application process and do not need an eTA.
However, those who have freely traveled to Canada for as long as they can remember, such as citizens of France, the United Kingdom, Japan, Australia, and many other visa-exempt countries, are expected now to go through the eTA procedure before traveling unless they fall within very limited exceptions (such as being a diplomat or a crew member of a means of transportation). U.S. green card holders should have an eTA as well. Again, this obligation will be enforceable sometime in the fall.
Citizens of Mexico, Brazil, Romania, and Bulgaria
An exception to the visa requirement has recently been introduced for citizens of Mexico, Brazil, Romania, and Bulgaria. If citizens from these countries arrive in Canada by air and either have a valid visa for the United States or have been in possession of a visa to Canada in the last 10 years, they must obtain an eTA. If these conditions are not met, citizens of these four countries will still need to apply for a visa and will therefore not need to obtain an eTA.
Holders of Canadian work permits
Visa-exempt citizens who currently hold Canadian work permits require an eTA in order to fly back to Canada. Those who hold work permits issued before August 1, 2015, should apply for an eTA. Those who hold work permits issued on or after August 1, 2015, are supposed to have been issued an eTA automatically; however, such individuals would be wise to proactively confirm that their work permit approval letter contains an eTA.
One of the key exceptions to these requirements is if the individuals in question are returning to Canada after visiting only the United States. Such individuals do not need an eTA because they did not travel outside the North American security perimeter that is guarded by the eTA requirement in Canada and the equivalent Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) requirement in the United States.
Permanent residents of Canada
Permanent residents of Canada are exempt from the eTA requirement and can instead travel on their permanent resident cards. This exemption, however, is not as ideal as it sounds given that there are often lengthy delays associated with obtaining permanent resident cards. At this time, delays of two months for first-card issuance and six months for renewed cards are common.
If there are doubts as to whether the residency requirements have been met, delays can increase to more than a year. Furthermore, any new permanent residents who obtained an eTA before becoming a permanent resident cannot use their eTA after landing since their eTA is automatically canceled at the time of landing.
As a result, once the obligation to have an eTA before boarding a plane to Canada becomes enforceable later this year, those permanent residents who are citizens of visa-exempt countries and do not have a permanent resident card will be obliged to obtain another travel document at a visa post abroad before coming back to Canada.
Process of obtaining an eTA
An application for an eTA can be completed online and costs $7 Canadian. Once approved, an eTA will be linked to a particular passport and will be valid for five years from the date of issue or until the individual’s current passport expires, whichever occurs first.
The processing time for an eTA is supposed to be very quick—the eTA should be issued within a few seconds of application. However, if any response made in the online application is deemed to be questionable (e.g., a response casts doubts as to the purpose of the individual’s visit to Canada or reveals potential grounds for medical or criminal inadmissibility), the online application will automatically generate more questions for the applicant.
As a result, some individuals may face delays in obtaining an eTA. For example, we understand that some individuals are being required to submit to a medical examination before obtaining their eTA even if they have never had to do so in the past. Part of the reason for this may be that the online system has been programmed to identify even the most remote risks and act accordingly.
Summary
As a result of all of the above, citizens of visa-exempt countries who are planning to travel to Canada (or to travel back to Canada if they live in Canada) would be well-advised not to wait until the requirement is enforceable. Instead, they should start the eTA application process as soon as practicable. We will update readers on further developments as they arise.
So, just to be clear, citizens of the US do not need the eTA?
This is a particularly interesting article for us in Vermont, as we are direct neighbors with Canada. Some towns and even some houses share real estate in Vermont and Canada. As I read this, I don’t see any mention of vehicular travel to/from Canada but only air travel. Will it apply to cars/trucks crossing the boarders as well? Many of us have relatives in Canada and visit several times annually. Does an eTA require specific dates of travel? Thanks for shedding some light!