Appointing a defence or military attaché

For the purposes of these guidelines, the following apply: 

  • Mission means a high commission or an embassy
  • IRCC means Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
  • TRV means a Temporary Resident Visa

In accordance with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, proposed candidates for assignments as defence and/or military attachés and their deputies, whether resident or non-resident, require the express consent of Global Affairs Canada. The Office of Protocol’s Accreditation Unit administers this webpage and the military attachés approval process on behalf of the Government of Canada.

Effective May 21, 2026, the military attachés approval process is no longer a pre-visa application process. Missions wishing to appoint a resident or non-resident defence and/or military attaché are asked to direct their nominee to first apply for a diplomatic TRV based on the guidelines entitled Applying for a visa for a posting to Canada.

Once the nominee has submitted a TRV application, the applicant (or mission on the applicant’s behalf) must email a notification to the relevant IRCC office indicating that the TRV application has been submitted. This notification must include:

  • The application file number (V plus 9 digits) with the completed details of military service table
  • A detailed curriculum vitæ listing all military service and professional occupations, promotions and education (brief biographies are not accepted)
  • A copy of the nominee’s passport biographical page (PDF format); if the biographical page does not specify the type of passport (for example, diplomatic, official, service), a copy of the passport cover page must be included
  • A Note verbale from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the sending State addressed to Global Affairs Canada (a Note from the local mission will not be accepted).

Foreign language documents must be accompanied by a courtesy translation into English or French.

The Note verbale from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs must contain the following information as set out in the Note verbale template in Annex to this page:

  • Name of the nominee (legal name as it appears in their passport)
  • Military rank
  • List of the accompanying members of the family*
  • Position title that conforms to the table of Military titles
  • City of residence (such as, Ottawa or Washington, D.C.)
  • Approximate assignment start date
  • Predecessor name and their effective/planned departure date
  • Statement that the nominee is not a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident of Canada.

* In the case of non-resident military attachés, only the accompanying spouse/partner is eligible for accreditation documents, per Canada’s policy on the Accreditation of non-resident foreign representatives. Please also consult Family members, definitions and related notifications for detailed requirements regarding the accreditation of family members.

Email addresses of IRCC visa processing offices to which to send notifications

Email notifications submitted to the Department of National Defence (DND), other Office of Protocol e-mail addresses, or even geographic divisions of Global Affairs Canada or a Canadian mission abroad will delay the process.

New positions

Foreign States are generally entitled to a maximum of 3 military attachés. If the nominee will fulfill a position that exceeds this ceiling, the mission is required to follow steps outlined in Canada’s policy on Staff increases.

Processing times and final steps

The sending State is responsible for submitting complete and accurate applications. If complete, the processing time for a request for approval and the corresponding issuance of a diplomatic visa is generally eight (8) weeks from the date the request is received. The Office of Protocol cannot provide additional clarity regarding the processing time for any application that exceeds eight (8) weeks as this depends on the circumstances of each application.

Once the nomination is accepted, the Office of Protocol will notify the sending State. It will also inform IRCC and DND. IRCC will subsequently communicate directly with the nominee about visa issuance.

For information on the issuance of accreditation documents to defence and/or military attachés, please refer to the Office of Protocol’s Accreditation services guidelines.

Annex : Note verbale template

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of [Country]

Protocol and Assignments Division

[City], [Country]

No. 2024/ABC/123

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of [Country] presents its compliments to Global Affairs Canada and has the honour to request approval of the appointment and the diplomatic visa for Colonel [Rank] Brenda RIVER to take up a posting in Canada and accompanied by the below listed accompanying family members. Col River is designated as Defence Attaché [Position title that conforms to the table of Military titles] at the Embassy of the [Country] in Ottawa for a period of 4 years, and she is starting her assignment on September 1, 2026.

Col River will succeed [Rank] Justin Case, Defence Attaché, whose posting is scheduled to end on July 31, 2026. Col River is not a Canadian Citizen or Permanent Resident of Canada. The details of all other citizenships are [list if applicable].

Details of the nominee and dependents:

  • RIVER, Brenda (DOB 1965/01/01), Passport D12345(diplomatic) -
  • Spouse: STREAM, Stewart (DOB 1965/01/01), Passport O12345(official)
  • Dependent Child 1: RIVER-STREAM, Jett(DOB), Passport O12346 (official)
  • Dependent Child 2: RIVER-STREAM, Ryder(DOB), Passport P12345 (regular)
  • Dependent Child 3: RIVER-STREAM, Rain(DOB), Passport P12346 (regular).

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of [Country] avails itself of this opportunity to renew to Global Affairs Canada the assurances of its highest consideration.

City, [Month],[Day],[Year]

Official seal