The short answer: no, an eTA does not give you the right to work in Canada, and that includes seasonal and tourism jobs at ski resorts, lodges, campgrounds, restaurants and tour companies. Seasonal workers from visa-exempt countries need a work permit, usually through the Working Holiday program or a permit tied to one employer, and when that permit is approved the eTA for the flight is issued with it automatically. If you are coming only to visit, you can apply for a Canada eTA through a paid private service, separate from the Government of Canada.
Applying on canada.ca costs only the government fee.
An eTA is a flight clearance for a short visit, normally up to six months, and even then it does not promise entry; the officer at the border makes that call. Everything in this article follows from that one point: the eTA answers “may this person board a plane to Canada?”, while a work permit answers “may this person work here?”. Those are two separate questions with two separate documents.
This page is about work that is paid in Canada or that Canadians would normally do. Meetings and negotiations for a company based abroad are a different case, covered in meetings and negotiations for a foreign employer, and they are not what a ski-season or campground job looks like.
Can you work in Canada on an eTA?
No. The eTA lets you travel to Canada by air for a visit, and that is all it does. It does not let you work or study, and Canada’s own page on what an eTA does and doesn’t cover says plainly that working without the right permit can count as breaking the rules, which has consequences for later trips.
The word “work” is wider than many people expect. In IRCC’s guidance to its own officers, work means an activity for wages or commission, or an activity that competes directly with Canadians for jobs. Unpaid activity can fall inside that too, if it is the kind of thing people are normally paid for, or if it gives valuable experience that a Canadian could otherwise have had. So “it is only for the season”, “it is only for room and board” and “nobody pays me” do not settle the question by themselves.
Which seasonal and tourism jobs need a work permit?
Look at what you would be doing, not at what the job is called. The table below sorts common seasonal situations by whether an eTA alone is enough.
| Situation | Is an eTA enough? | What you need |
|---|---|---|
| Lift operator, ski or bike rental, ski instructor at a Canadian resort | No | A work permit |
| Front desk, housekeeping, kitchen or bar at a hotel, lodge or hostel for the summer | No | A work permit |
| Guide or driver hired by a Canadian tour company | No | A work permit |
| Unpaid internship at a resort or attraction, done “for experience” | No, unpaid experience of this kind still counts as work | A work permit |
| Ordinary volunteering for a charity that does not replace a paid position | May not count as work | Check the criteria above before you book |
| Helping family for free; a stay of one to four weeks on a family farm for room and board | Usually not work | Nothing beyond the eTA; farm work beyond four weeks needs a permit |
| Meetings and negotiations for an employer abroad, paid from abroad | Yes, as a business visitor | The eTA, see the business-trip article above |
Two things in the table deserve a sentence each. A position that people are usually paid for stays a job even when the employer gives a bed and meals instead of money, so a resort offering room and board in place of a wage is still offering work. The short family-farm stay in the last row is different: it is helping out, not filling a post. And the volunteering row is cautious on purpose: Canada’s guidance gives a general test and not a list of approved activities, so a role that fills a post normally held by a paid employee needs a careful look.
There is a short list of narrow exceptions where a permit is not required at all, for example for certain athletes, short-term performers and crew members, and even those people usually still need an eTA or a visa to travel. Seasonal hospitality and resort work is not among them.
What are the usual routes to a seasonal work permit?
There are three that come up most often.
Working Holiday. This is one category of International Experience Canada (IEC), and it gives an open work permit. Open means you can work for almost any employer, and you do not need a job offer to apply. The program is meant for young people, generally aged 18 to 35 (30 in some countries), and it works only if your country has an agreement with Canada. The list of countries and the age limit for each are on the IEC pages of canada.ca; this article does not repeat them because they change.
Young Professionals. Another IEC category, but the permit here is tied to a specific employer and a job that fits your career, so a signed offer comes first.
An employer-specific permit outside IEC. The permit names one employer, and you need a job offer. For most jobs the employer must first obtain a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA). Of the two types of work permit that exist, this employer-specific kind is the more common one.
Three practical points about IEC. After an application is approved, a port of entry letter of introduction appears in your online account and stays valid for one year. That letter is not a work permit and does not guarantee entry. The permit itself is issued by an officer at the border when you arrive, before the letter’s end date. And IRCC advises you not to buy tickets or commit to an employer until the application is approved. For the 2026 season IRCC gives a processing time of about six weeks, which is a good reason to apply well before a winter or summer season starts.
Do you still need an eTA once you have a work permit?
Yes, if you are travelling by air and you come from a visa-exempt country, you need both. The good news is that you do not apply for the second one separately. When your first work permit is approved before you travel, an eTA is issued automatically at no extra charge, and its number is printed in the letter of introduction you receive. Keep that letter. When a permit is extended, the eTA is again issued automatically, and a new passport means a new eTA, because the approval is linked to the passport.
If you plan to apply for the permit at the port of entry, which is allowed only for some visa-exempt workers, the rules change in one respect: a person flying in still needs the eTA before boarding. And people who cross by road, rail or water do not need an eTA at all; the visitor guide on arriving by road or ferry instead covers that side.
There is also the reverse situation, where you already live and work in Canada on a foreign passport and fly in and out for holidays. That is explained in a short guide on flying back in while you live and work in Canada.
Can you come on an eTA and look for a seasonal job once you’re in Canada?
This is the plan many seasonal workers consider, and the rules do not support it. IRCC’s advice is to apply for a work permit before you travel. Most people cannot apply for a permit while they are inside Canada, and the temporary policy that once let visitors do exactly that was ended on 28 August 2024.
There is a narrow path at the port of entry, only for visa-exempt travellers who meet the requirements, usually an LMIA or an offer of employment number, or eligibility for an open permit. Several groups are excluded from it: travellers who need a visa, IEC applicants (apart from U.S. citizens and permanent residents), and anyone relying on flagpoling, which is closed. Finding a job while you are here as a visitor does not by itself make you eligible, and until a permit is issued you cannot start.
What if an IEC letter reaches you while you are already in Canada as a visitor? Under canada.ca’s rules, the permit can be issued only on entry, which means leaving and coming back in, and the re-entry cannot be from the United States or from Saint-Pierre and Miquelon. That is a rule to know, not a plan to build a trip around, and the one thing to hold on to is simple: until the permit is in your hands, a visitor does not work, not even on a trial basis.
What does IRCC decide, and what does the border officer decide?
People mix up the two, so it helps to separate them.
| Decided by IRCC | Decided by the border officer on arrival |
|---|---|
| Whether your eTA is approved | Whether you are allowed into Canada on this occasion |
| Whether your work permit application is approved, and the issue of the letter of introduction | Whether to issue the work permit itself, based on your approved letter, before the letter ends |
| The automatic eTA that goes with your first permit | Whether to admit you only as a visitor if you have no letter, in which case you may not work |
| How long you may stay, normally up to six months for a visitor |
So IRCC approves the paperwork and the officer decides at the border. If you hold an approval, tell the officer so, and describe the purpose of your trip accurately. What the officer can ask you in more general terms, and why a consistent answer matters, is laid out in what the officer can ask you on arrival.
A visitor who is allowed in will usually get up to six months, and a stay that needs to run longer is extended before the current period ends, filed at least 30 days beforehand. An extension is a matter of visitor status; it does not give a visitor the right to work.
The short version
- An eTA lets you fly to Canada for a visit; it does not let you work or study.
- “Work” includes unpaid and room-and-board arrangements when people are normally paid for them.
- Seasonal hospitality, resort and tour jobs generally need a work permit.
- The usual routes are Working Holiday (open permit), Young Professionals, or an employer-specific permit, often with an LMIA.
- Your first permit brings an eTA automatically; extensions and new passports follow the same pattern.
- IRCC approves the application, and the officer at the border decides on entry and issues the permit.
FAQ
Can you work on an eTA visa? No. An eTA is not a visa and not a work permit, only clearance to board a flight to Canada. For work you need a permit, and when one is approved, the eTA is issued with it automatically.
Can I do a seasonal job in Canada without a visa? Citizens of visa-exempt countries fly in with an eTA, but the seasonal job itself still needs a work permit. Working Holiday is a common way to get one, if your country has an agreement with Canada.
Is it legal to work in Canada on a visitor visa? No. A visitor cannot take a job, whether the entry is by visa or eTA. The exceptions to the permit rule are narrow, and seasonal work is not among them.
Can work permit holders in Canada get an eTA? Yes. The eTA is issued automatically with your first permit and again with an extension, and a new passport needs a new eTA. You do not file a separate application for it.
Can I enter Canada with an eTA only? If you are flying in as a visitor from a visa-exempt country, yes: the eTA is the travel document you need to board, and the border officer still decides whether to admit you. If the trip involves a job, the eTA is not enough, and you also need a work permit before you start.