How to Fill Out Form IMM 5708: Extension, Restoration, and Medical Exam

To fill out Form IMM 5708, download the current PDF from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), open it in Adobe Reader 10 or higher on a computer, type your answers into every mandatory field, and click the blue Validate button so the form generates a barcode page. That validated PDF, together with your passport scan, photo, proof of funds, and the $100 CAD fee, goes to IRCC through your online secure account.¹² IRCC recommends applying at least 30 days before your current status expires.³

Who the Form Is For and When to File It

IMM 5708 covers three situations: extending your authorized stay as a visitor, switching from a study or work permit to visitor status, and renewing or applying for a Temporary Resident Permit.⁴ You need to be physically in Canada and currently hold valid temporary status. If you entered as a visitor with no stamp in your passport, your status lasts six months from your entry date. Super visa holders who arrived after June 22, 2023 can stay up to five years before needing to extend.⁵

File at least 30 days before your status expires. Waiting longer is risky: if IRCC asks for additional documents and your status lapses before you respond, you lose the protection of maintained status. If your status has already expired, IMM 5708 alone is not enough — see the restoration section below.

What to Gather Before Opening the PDF

The form asks for detailed personal history, and hunting for documents mid-application leads to mistakes in fields officers read carefully. Have these ready first:

Your Unique Client Identifier (UCI), an eight- or ten-digit number formatted 0000-0000 or 00-0000-0000, printed on any previous IRCC correspondence, visa, or permit.⁶
A valid passport with a clear digital scan of the biographical page. Your extended status cannot run past your passport’s expiry date, so the passport needs to cover the full extension you’re requesting.⁷
Proof of financial support — bank statements from recent months, or a letter from a Canadian host confirming they can support you.
Employment history for the past ten years, with dates.
Family details: names, dates of birth, and current addresses for immediate family.
A digital photograph, front-facing, with a frame size of at least 35 mm × 45 mm and a head size (chin to crown) of 31 mm to 36 mm. No digital alteration.⁸

Super visa holders also need proof of private health insurance valid for at least one year, from a Canadian insurer or a foreign insurer approved by the minister.⁹

If a lawyer or consultant is filing on your behalf, include a completed IMM 5476 (Use of a Representative). Once appointed, the representative receives all IRCC correspondence. Only one representative per application, and each adult dependent (18 or older) needs a separate IMM 5476.¹⁰

Filling In the Form

Download the PDF directly from the IRCC page for IMM 5708.⁴ You need Adobe Reader 10 or higher with JavaScript enabled.¹¹ The form does not work reliably on tablets or phones. Use a computer.

The sections walk through personal details, contact information, passport and travel document data, and your visit to Canada. In “Details of Visit to Canada,” you enter your purpose of stay and intended departure date. Type into every field. Printing and writing entries by hand slows processing and can cause the barcode validation to fail.

Using the Validate Button

A blue Validate button sits at the top and bottom of the form. Click it after you’ve completed every section. The form checks that all mandatory fields (marked with an asterisk) are filled in. Missing fields highlight in red with an error message.¹² When everything passes, a new page of barcodes appears at the end of the document. Those barcodes encode your answers into a format officers can scan.

If you edit anything after validating, click Validate again. The older barcodes will not reflect your changes. If the button does nothing when you click it, the usual causes are JavaScript being turned off in Adobe Reader or a mandatory field left blank.¹³ Save the validated PDF with the barcode page included. That’s the file you upload.

Submitting the Application

Sign in to your IRCC secure account with the GCKey or Canadian banking Sign-In Partner you registered with.¹⁴ Upload the validated PDF, your passport scan, financial documents, photo, and any other supporting evidence to the document checklist. Online submission reaches IRCC instantly and generally moves faster.²

Pay the $100 CAD fee per person by credit or debit card at the end of the submission.¹ Payment is what formally submits the application. Until you pay, IRCC has not received it.

Paper filing is possible if you cannot apply online — you mail the validated PDF and printed supporting documents to the Case Processing Centre in Edmonton.¹⁵ Paper takes longer because IRCC counts the date the package arrives, not the date you mailed it. Close to the 30-day window, online is safer.

After You Submit

If you filed before your current status expired, you can legally remain in Canada until IRCC decides. This is maintained status, and it holds you to the same conditions as the status you’re extending. A visitor stays a visitor and cannot work or study.¹⁶ It is a legal bridge, not a new permit.

IRCC may ask for biometrics (fingerprints and a photo). The fee is $85 CAD per person, up to $170 CAD for a family applying together.¹⁷ You book at a visa application centre, a designated Service Canada office, or a U.S. application support centre. If you gave biometrics for any temporary resident application in the past ten years, you do not give them again.¹⁸ Visitors from visa-exempt countries are exempt from biometrics for extension applications.¹⁹

Processing times shift with volume. Check the IRCC processing times page for a current estimate.²⁰ The decision letter arrives in your online account. If approved, IRCC issues a Visitor Record showing your new expiry date. It comes by mail to your Canadian address, typically within six weeks of the decision.¹⁶

If the Application Is Refused

A refusal does not trigger a removal order, but it ends maintained status. You can stay only until the expiry date of the original status you held when you applied.⁷ If that date has passed by the time the refusal arrives, leave promptly. Overstaying is an offence under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and can affect future applications.

Restoration if Your Status Already Expired

If your status has expired but fewer than 90 days have passed, you can apply for restoration of status. The restoration fee is $246.25 on top of the regular $100 extension fee.¹ IRCC must receive it within 90 days of the expiry.²¹

You must have met all the conditions of your previous status while it was valid, meaning no unauthorized work or study. Each family member who lost status applies separately and pays the full restoration fee. There is no family rate. Temporary Resident Permit holders cannot use restoration; a different process applies.²² Past 90 days, restoration is no longer available, and you must leave and reapply from outside Canada.

When a Medical Exam Comes Into Play

Most visitor extensions do not require a medical exam. It becomes required when your total stay in Canada will exceed six months and you spent six or more consecutive months in a designated country or territory in the year before entering Canada.²³ IRCC keeps the list of designated countries on its website. An exam is also required for super visa extensions and for anyone planning to work in fields where public health must be protected, such as healthcare or child care.²⁴

Only a government-approved panel physician can perform the exam. Your family doctor’s results will not be accepted. IRCC notifies you when an exam is needed and directs you to an authorized physician; the physician sends results directly to IRCC and makes no decision on the application.

1
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Citizenship and Immigration Application Fees
2
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Visitor Record: How to Apply
3
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Visitor Record: Who Can Apply
4
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Application to Change Conditions, Extend My Stay or Remain in Canada as a Visitor or Temporary Resident Permit Holder (IMM 5708)
5
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. How Long Can I Stay in Canada as a Visitor
6
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Where Can I Find My Client ID/UCI?
7
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Guide 5551 – Applying to Change Conditions or Extend Your Stay in Canada – Online Application
8
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Temporary Resident Visa Application Photograph Specifications
9
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Super Visa for Parents and Grandparents: Who Can Apply
10
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Use of a Representative Form
11
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Application to Stay in Canada Longer as a Temporary Resident Permit Holder
12
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. How Do I Fill Out and Validate IRCC Application Forms With 2D Barcodes
13
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. After I Click the Validate Button on My Application Form, Nothing Happens and I Don’t See the Barcodes. Why?
14
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. IRCC Secure Account: Sign In
15
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Applying to Change Conditions or Extend Your Stay in Canada – Paper
16
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Visitor Record: After You Apply
17
Government of Canada. Biometrics: How to Give Your Fingerprints and Photo
18
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Biometrics: Who – Where – When – Cost?
19
Government of Canada. Biometrics: Who Needs to Give Their Fingerprints and Photo
20
Government of Canada. Check Current IRCC Processing Times
21
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. I Stayed in Canada Longer Than I Was Supposed to. How Do I Restore My Status as a Visitor?
22
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Restore Your Status and Get a Work Permit
23
Government of Canada. Find Out if You Need a Medical Exam for Your Temporary Resident Application
24
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Do I Need a Medical Exam to Get a Visa?