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What should I check on my Canadian eTA approval before airline check-in?

Compare the passport number in the approval email with the passport you will use to travel. Canada says the eTA is electronically linked to that passport; if the passport number is wrong, you must apply again. You do not need a special printed eTA document for the airline—the linked passport is what the carrier scans—but approval is not a guarantee of admission.

Carry-on, checked baggage, pet carrier and stroller prepared for airport travel

What this answer depends on

  • Canadian eTA approval verification for a traveler who already has an approval; not eligibility or application advice
  • The government warns that an incorrect passport number can prevent the electronic link from working at check-in. Read the actual number in the approval against the original passport rather than relying on a copied application note. This is a different task from checking the spelling of the name on an airline ticket.
  • The eTA is electronically associated with the passport; Canada does not require a special printed eTA document for this airline-verification purpose. Keeping the approval information for reference may be useful, but it does not replace the correct passport or cure a wrong number.
  • Canada instructs approved eTA holders to check the passport number and apply again if it is incorrect.
  • The eTA is linked electronically to the passport, which the airline scans; no special printed eTA document is required.

Important exceptions

  • No eTA processing time, approval probability, visa exemption or admission guarantee is provided. A new or different passport requires the applicable government guidance. This article does not advise whether a specific traveler needs an eTA or a visa.

What to do next

  1. Open the approval message and compare its passport number with the original travel passport.

  2. If the approval contains the wrong number, follow Canada’s official instruction to apply again rather than assuming the airline can correct the eTA.

  3. Travel with the passport to which the valid eTA is linked.

  4. Provide the airline with correct travel-document details and complete its remaining check-in checks.

  5. Have the original passport, approval email and eTA reference available for checking; do not share these publicly.

More booking questions

Will printing the approval solve a wrong passport number?

No. The government instruction for an incorrect passport number is to apply again; a printout does not change the electronic link.

Checked againstElectronic travel authorization: After you apply

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