I can’t open my application form in PDF format. What can I do?
COVID-19: Safety measures
We’re experiencing issues with some of our forms with 2D barcodes:
- Generic Application Form for Canada [IMM 0008] (PDF, 652 KB)
- Application to Sponsor, Sponsorship Agreement and Undertaking [IMM 1344] (PDF, 478.72 KB)
- Schedule A – Background/Declaration [IMM 5669] (PDF, 776.4 KB)
If you’re submitting one of these forms, you need to use version 11.0.09 of Acrobat Reader to fill it out.
If you’re applying at a visa application centre (VAC), they may ask you to re-fill out the form at their internet kiosks.
IRCC forms that need to be validated using the “validate” button at the bottom of the form use special encoding. You need a computer with Adobe Reader 10 or higher to use them.
If you have problems opening a PDF on our website, try the following:
For PC users
- Find the link of the file you want to save (you may need to go back to the previous page to find it).
- Right-click the link.
- Select “Save target as” or “Save link as”.
- Choose the location on your computer where you would like to save the file.
- Select “Save”.
- Use Windows Explorer to get to the location where you saved the file.
- Right click on the PDF file.
- Select “Open with”.
- Select “Choose program”.
- Select “Adobe Acrobat Reader”.
- Make sure to check the box that says, “Always use this program to open these files”.
- Select “OK”.
For Mac users
- Find the link of the file you want to save (you may need to go back to the previous page to find it).
- Press the Control (Ctrl) key and click on the link
- When the option menu appears, choose “Download link to disk” or “Download linked file”.
- Choose the location on your computer where you would like to store the file. Your computer will start the download once you have selected a location.
- Use Spotlight or Finder to look for the downloaded file.
You can get a free copy of Adobe Reader from the Adobe website. It is available for Windows, Mac and Android devices.
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