site.btaCanada to Start Phase-out of Visa Requirements for Bulgarians in May 2017

Canada to Start Phase-out of Visa Requirements for Bulgarians in May 2017

Sofia, October 7 (BTA) - Canada will start to phase out visa requirements for Bulgarian nationals from May 1, 2017, the press office of the Bulgarian Government said.

Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov discussed the scrapping of visa requirements with his Canadian counterpart Justin Trudeau over the phone with a conference call, requested by Trudeau, lasting nearly an hour. Bulgarian Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Roumyana Buchvarova was also present.

Trudeau acquainted his Bulgarian counterpart with the Canadian government's efforts and great volume of work towards lifting the visa requirements. The Canadian Prime Minister said Bulgarians who had already visited his country, Bulgarians holding US visas and Bulgarian business people will travel visa-free as of May 1, 2017. The Canadian government will make an effort to ensure all other Bulgarian citizens would be able to travel visa-free to Canada from the end of 2017. That deadline could be pushed back - but not further than May 1, 2018 - only in case there are technical difficulties caused by the substantial administrative workload.

Trudeau noted that the lifting of visa requirements was made possible following multiple checks, following the conclusions made about Bulgaria's preparedness and thanks to the great headway that bilateral relations have made. The Canadian move is significant in that it is seen as a likely precursor of the lifting of US visa requirements for Bulgarian nationals.

Borissov and Trudeau agreed to exchange visits in 2017. It would be the first time the prime minister of either country visits the other.