Canadian Students

US Students

In order to enter Canada, US students will need to have a passport that is valid for at least 6 months from the end date of the school. The School of Ministry is under 6 months long and is therefore considered a short term program by Citizenship and Immigration Canada. This means American applicants do not need to apply for a study permit or visitors visa. Once accepted, applicants will be sent an SOM letter of acceptance and SOM travel package explaining the program, this can be helpful to present when landing at the border* to explain the nature of the School of Ministry (SOM) program.

International Students

Before applying to SOM please unsure you have researched and understand all requirements needed to enter Canada. First applicant will need to determine whether they need a visitors visa or and eTA (Electronic Travel Authorization). To help you determine whether you need a visa or an eTA to enter Canada, you can use this link to the Canadian government website: https://www.cic.gc.ca/english/visit/visas.asp

APPLICANTS WHO NEED AN eTA
Starting in March 2016, visa-exempt foreign nationals who fly to Canada will need an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA). Exceptions include U.S. citizens and travellers with a valid visa.

If you are a national of a country that only needs an eTA to enter Canada and you have a valid passport, then it is highly likely that you will be able to enter Canada to attend SOM without any issues. To apply for an eTA, please visit http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/visit/eta.asp

Each student will need a passport that is valid for at least 6 months from the end date of the school. This is vital in order to participate in the outreach. Most countries will not admit visitors whose passport expires within six months. Once accepted students will be sent an SOM letter of acceptance and SOM travel package explaining the program, this can be helpful to present when landing at the border* to explain the nature of the School of Ministry (SOM) program.

APPLICANTS WHO NEED A VISITORS VISA
If you are a national of of a country that needs a visitors visa to enter Canada, you will need to provide SOM with a copy of your Canadian visitors visa in order to proceed with your application.

The School of Ministry is not a Designated Learning Institute and therefore can not assist applicants in getting a visitors visa. Due to the high number of applications SOM receives from nationals needing a visitors visa to enter Canada, applicants who do not provide a copy of their Canadian visitors visa will automatically have their application paused and will not be able to continue their application until a Canadian Visitors visa is provided.

PLEASE NOTE:

Catch The Fire Toronto School Of Ministry (SOM) is not a Designated Learning Institute (DLI), and is therefor not recognized by Canadian Immigration as an official school. This means if you need a visa to enter Canada, the SOM letter of acceptance and SOM travel package or any other document/letter from SOM will not help you attain a Canadian visa. For this reason we do not give out any documents/letters expressly for the purpose of obtaining a Canadian visa.
Not all fees paid to SOM are refundable, including; $50 application fee, 3% of all fees and some fees which are completely non-refundable. Please see our financial information package for further details. For this reason we strongly recommend that you wait to pay any fees to SOM until after you have obtained a Canadian visa and are sure you can enter Canada.
Heart & Advance Module only; if you do need a visa, please ensure you request a 'Multiple Entry Visa' in order to enable you to re-enter Canada when you return from outreach.
*no matter what your citizenship, for the purpose of attending SOM, you are entering Canada as a visitor not as a student, since SOM is not a DLI (a student visa is only needed if you are attending a DLI). It will be helpful for you to keep this in mind when you land at the Canadian border.

One Module

For students taking one 5-month Heart Module or the 3-week Leaders School (LSOM), Citizenship and Immigration Canada document you as a visitor to Canada and typically give you permission to stay 6 months in Canada. This is enough to complete either the Heart Module or LSOM.

Multiple Modules

Students from outside of Canada who want to take multiple modules will need to extend their visitor's visa after their first module. The Citizenship and Immigration website for Canada has more details on this. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/visit/extend-stay.asp. if you do need a visa, please ensure you request a 'Multiple Entry Visa' in order to enable you to re-enter Canada when you return from outreach

Other Opportunities - Catch The Fire India

If you are unable to get a Canadian visitors visa, but you are able to travel to India then you could attend a school facilitated by Catch The Fire India! For more information visit Catch The Fire India’s website here.

Catch The Fire School of Ministry does not take any responsibility for any applicant’s or student's immigration status. The obtainment of the appropriate visa and any other necessary travel requirments is the applicant/student's responsibility. If you have any questions please contact us at som.toronto@catchthefire.com.