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A2IM calls on US to relax visa requirements for Canadian musicians
By Chris Cooke | Published on Monday 11 May 2015
American indie label trade group A2IM used the Canadian Music Week conference in Toronto last week to call on the US to remove visa requirements for Canadian artists who wish to tour the States.
The Canadian government last year axed the red tape American artists used to have to navigate to tour north of the border, and A2IM reckons its home country should return the favour, which seems reasonable.
The trade group said on Friday: “Under current legislation, Canadian artists are only able to tour within the US after securing a P Visa, a practice that is mandated to be processed in two weeks but can often stretch to six months time. This can stall tours and result in artists, US clubs and restaurants losing revenue. Relaxing visa requirements would allow for an open exchange of ideas and cultural reciprocity between two neighbouring countries”.
Noting how this impacts on its members, A2IM added: “Our diverse membership nationwide with Canadian artists on their roster has been impacted by this practice and support eliminating the visa requirement”.
UK artists are also familiar with the visa frustrations connected to playing your tunes on American soil. It remains to be seen if Canadian musicians get to circumvent all that hassle anytime soon.
