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So, you’re stuck with PIA VPN not connecting in Canada? No problem. Although PIA is one of the most well-renowned VPN brands in the industry, it can break down occasionally.

If you have tried applying the common steps when the VPN won’t connect in Canada and still can’t get it to work, a good alternative to try is PureVPN which is excellent for unblocking in Canada as well as privacy for highly inexpensive rates. Avail Exclusive Offer –CA$ 4.48/mo (US$ 3.29/mo) (5 Months FREE + 84% Off on a 2-year plan)!

Private Internet Access Not Working on Windows in Canada? Troubleshooting Guide

Following are some useful tips to try when you have PIA VPN not connecting in Canada:

1. Switch servers

First of all, if you find PIA not connecting in Canada, you should try changing the server location to multiple others. PIA boasts a network of 35,564 servers, which is a significant amount.

pia-servers-in-Canada

However, some servers may go offline from time to time due to technical faults or for maintenance purposes in Canada. This is why you should try connecting to other servers to make sure the problem is with a specific server rather than with the entire service or some other source.

Also, connecting to servers that are physically closer to your location in Canada will result in the best performance, though PIA is generally pretty fast in Canada. In addition, if you’re aiming to download torrents, some servers will work better than others for this purpose. For instance, the Netherlands is a popular server location for a safe and stable torrenting experience. You can download torrents with PIA in Canada using either its core VPN network or the SOCKS5 proxy.

If you are able to connect to PIA in Canada after switching servers, great! Otherwise, go to the next few tips mentioned below.

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2. Disable IPv6 to fix the issue

In some instances, certain packet leaks which occur due to IPv6 being enabled on the device in Canada can also cause issues in VPN connectivity. Therefore, it is advised to disable your device’s IPv6 before connecting to the VPN in Canada. We have listed down the steps for disabling IPv6 on a Windows device in Canada.

  1. Right-click on the “Network / Wi-Fi ” icon on the bottom-right-hand side of your screen to open up the menu shown below.
  2. Next, click on Open Network and Sharing Center.
  3. In the Network and Sharing Center window, click on Change adapter options.
  4. You will then see a list of network adapters available on your computer. Right-click on your active network adapter (Ethernet or Wi-Fi) and select Properties.
  5. In the Properties window, scroll down until you see Internet Protocol Version 6 (TCP/IPv6).
  6. Un-check the Internet Protocol Version 6 (TCP/IPv6) checkbox and click on OK to save the changes.
  7. Now that IPv6 has been disabled on your computer, restart your computer for the setting to take effect.

3. Check the Internet connection

You should check your internet connection in Canada to see if the problem is at your end. Disconnect PIA in Canada and exit the app from your system/device entirely. Then, try connecting to the internet once again. If you are able to connect to the web with PIA disconnected in Canada, then your internet is working fine and the problem is with your PIA client.

However, if you are still unable to establish a connection to the internet, you’ll need to call your ISP and get the internet fixed in Canada. When you’re able to connect to the internet normally, try connecting to a PIA server once again in Canada.

It should work this time in Canada.

4. Change ports being used by the VPN

If PIA is not working in Canada on Windows 10, you can follow the steps mentioned below to change the ports being used by the VPN:

  1. Right-click on the PIA VPN icon in the menu bar
  2. Disconnect from the VPN
  3. Click Settings 
  4. Click Advanced 
  5. Set the connection type to UDP
  6. Change port to 1194 
  7. Click Save and reconnect
  8. If the issue still persists, you can disconnect from the VPN and change the port to 8080 and reconnect. Some other ports you can change to include 9201, and 53. 
  9. If it still doesn’t work, go to Advanced Settings disconnect from the VPN.
  10. Change connection type to TCP
  11. Click Save and reconnect again. You can even change the remote ports to 110, 80 or 53.

5. Remove software conflicts

Many antivirus and firewalls interfere with Private Internet Access connectivity and can block your connection in Canada. To determine if your security programs aren’t at the root of the problem responsible for your PIA not connecting in Canada, disable all your anti-malware/firewalls and try connecting to PIA.

If you are now able to use PIA in Canada, then you probably have an antivirus that is blocking your PIA connection. In fact, in some cases, even disabling the antivirus doesn’t work.

To resolve the issue, you will need to add all PIA-related files to the security software’s exception list in Canada.

On Windows, these are the relevant PIA files that need to be put in the list of exceptions:

  • C:\Program Files\Private Internet Access
  • C:\Program Files\Private Internet Access\tap\win10
  • C:\Program Files\Private Internet Access\tap\win7
  • C:\Program Files\Private Internet Access\pia-client.exe
  • C:\Program Files\Private Internet Access\pia-openvpn.exe
  • C:\Program Files\Private Internet Access\pia-service.exe
  • C:\Program Files\Private Internet Access\pia-support-tool.exe

For Mac:

  • /Applications/Private Internet Access/

Once PIA has been added to the list of exceptions in Canada, you can continue using it alongside your antivirus without any conflicts between the two services.

PIA is particularly susceptible to experiencing conflicts with Avast Antivirus as an official representative has stated it themselves:

message-boards-in-Canada

6. TAP adapter problems

If you have several VPNs installed in your system/device and find PIA not connecting in Canada, the problem might be caused by interference in your operating system’s TAP adapter. You will need to disable the adapters of other VPNs to fix this problem in Canada:

  • Open Control Panel > Network and Internet > Network and Sharing Centre > Change adapter settings.

adapter-settings-in-Canada

  • You’ll find the TAP adapters of all installed VPNs as well as your physical network.

TAP-adapters-in-Canada

  • Disable adapters of all VPNs other than PIA by right-clicking each and selecting Disable.

Once disabled, try connecting to PIA again in Canada.

7. Excessive multi-logins

PIA offers a generous multi-login limit of 10 devices in Canada. This means you can use a single PIA account to protect up to 10 different devices. PIA can be easily set up for Kodi in Canada or configured for use with Roku in Canada as well.

However, it’s important to not get carried away. If you cross the multi-login limit, you are likely to face connectivity or login issues with PIA in Canada. Make sure to log out of PIA from devices you no longer need it for. Then, try logging in again from your preferred devices.

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PIA Issues and Fixes for Specific Situations in Canada

Here are some services, devices, and platforms that users often find PIA VPN not connecting in Canada with:

PIA not working on Fire Stick in Canada

PIA not loading on your Fire TV in Canada? This VPN actually has a dedicated app for Fire Stick that can be downloaded from the Amazon App Store. You will, however, need a 2nd generation Fire Stick device to run the VPN because older generations of Amazon Fire TV do not support VPNs in Canada.

If you are facing problems when using PIA on a 2nd generation Fire TV device, this could be a firmware issue. In that case, you will have to reset your Fire TV to factory settings in order to fix this issue in Canada.

This is how you can reset Fire Stick in Canada:

  • From the System menu on Fire Stick, navigate to the bottom and select Settings
  • Scroll right to find “System” and select it
  • Scroll down and press “Reset to Factory Defaults”

After resetting the device, try connecting to PIA again in Canada. This fix was provided by one of PIA’s representatives on Reddit:

Comment
by u/PIAColleen from discussion PIA App not connecting on Fire TV
in PrivateInternetAccess

For more information, see our instructions for installing PIA on Fire Stick in Canada.

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PIA not working with Netflix in Canada

PIA is known to struggle with Netflix. However, the provider has been improving in many respects including Netflix compatibility and our latest test results show that PIA can unblock several Netflix regions in Canada.

So, you won’t be able to unblock every region of Netflix with PIA, but it generally works reliably for Canada

Get PureVPN For Netflix in Canada Unblocks All Major Netflix Libraries

PIA not working on the Android in Canada

If you are unable to connect to PIA on Android in Canada, your problem could be caused by one of the following:

  • Battery/storage saving app interfering with PIA connection.
  • App cache issues that need clearing.
  • Buggy app.

You should disable any battery management apps. If that doesn’t work, clear the cache stored in your PIA app from the settings menu. Finally, you should uninstall the current app and make a fresh installation. Or you can take a look at other Android VPNs in Canada .

PIA not connecting to Windows 10 in Canada

Follow the two sets of instructions below to resolve the connection issue of PIA on Windows 10 in Canada.

Protocol Change :

If PIA is not connecting in Canada, then you just need to follow the steps below to resolve the issue.

  1. Right-click on the PIA VPN icon in the menu bar or system tray.
  2. Click on “Settings“.
  3. Select “Connection” from the pane on the left side.
  4. Set the “Connection Type” to “UDP“.
  5. Change “Remote Port” to “1194“.
  6. Click “Save” and reconnect.
  7. If the issue persists, disconnect from the VPN and change the remote port to 8080 and reconnect. If it still doesn’t connect, change to 9201, or 53 and Save then reconnect.
  8. If you still don’t manage, go back to “Advanced settings“.
  9. Disconnect the VPN and change the connection type to “TCP“.
  10. Change remote port to Auto then click Save and reconnect.
  11. If the issue persists, Change the remote port to 443, then Save and reconnect.

IPv6 issue:

Windows users that find PIA stuck on connecting might be facing an IPv6 issue in Canada. One proven solution to this problem is to disable IPv6.

Here’s how you can disable IPv6:

  • Open Control Panel > Network and Internet > Network and Sharing Centre > Change adapter settings.

adapter-settings-in-Canada

  • Right-click your internet connection, then click Properties.
  • Uncheck the box next to Internet Protocol Version 6 and press OK.

ipv6-in-Canada

Some speed issues with PIA may be caused due to the newer TAP adapters in Windows. You can try uninstalling your current adapter and installing an older one by following these steps:

  • Press Windows + R to open the Run dialog box.
  • Type in devmgmt.msc.

run-in-Canada

  • In the device manager, find and click Network Adapters to expand this section.
  • Right-click the TAP-Windows Adapter and uninstall it.

device-manager-in-Canada

  • Now, install the older OpenVPN TAP driver from this link.
  • Run the installer.
  • Launch PIA once the installation has finished.

This should fix your Windows connectivity issues. If you’re looking for other VPNs, see this article on Best VPN for Windows in Canada.

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PIA kill switch not working in Canada

Users of PIA are probably aware that this VPN has a bit of a troublesome kill switch as reported by several users in Canada:

Is the Kill Switch still a problem to use?
by u/JoeyJJ999 in PrivateInternetAccess

The good news is that these issues only exist in older versions of PIA apps. So, if you’re facing problems with the kill switch in Canada, try updating your app to the latest version. This should fix the problem and enable you to use the killswitch without any problems.

PIA Port Forwarding not Working in Canada

If PIA does not connect properly in Canada after setting up port forwarding, your Windows Defender firewall settings might be causing the problem. After setting up the required port forwarding number in the app you want forwarded ports for, follow these steps:

  • Windows Defender Firewall > Allow an app or feature through Windows Defender Firewall.

  • Search for the app you are applying port forwarding to and check both private/public options.

  • Visit CanYouSeeMe.org and enter the 5-digit port forwarding number in “Port to Check”.

This should fix your port forwarding problems right away.

PIA Chrome Extension not Working in Canada

If the PIA Chrome extension is giving you problems in Canada, you will need to clear the browser cache and cookies. Here’s how you can do it:

  • Press Ctrl+H and click on “Clear browsing data”

clear-data-in-Canada

  • Click on the Advanced tab > Select “All time” in the Time range drop-down
  • Now check the boxes next to “Cookies another site data” and “cached images and files” > Clear data

clear-cache-in-Canada

After clearing these files, restart Chrome and try connecting to PIA again.

PIA Alternatives in Canada

Tried all the steps above but still have PIA not working. Maybe it’s time to cancel PIA in Canada and choose a new VPN. For instance, here’s how PIA compares to PureVPN in Canada, a super affordable VPN with top-notch features:

Features PureVPN PIA
Price CA$4.48/mo (US$ 3.29/mo) (5 Months FREE + 84% Off on a 2-year plan) CA$ 2.87/mo (US$ 2.11/mo)
Servers 6500+ in 140 countries 19480+ in 76 Countries
Customer Support 24/7 live chat & email support Knowledgebase & tickets
Jurisdiction Hong Kong USA
Logging Policy Zero logs Zero logs
Netflix support Strong Poor
Trustpilot Score 4.8/5 4.1/5
Website PUREVPN PIA

Unfortunately, there’s no PIA free trial in Canada for new users to try out, so your only option is to cancel it within the first 30 days if you have changed your mind and want your refund.

Final Thoughts

Private Internet Access is a decent VPN service in Canada, but it may undergo annoying errors that need fixing. You can resolve most PIA not connecting in Canada issues with the steps mentioned above, but if you’d rather try a different service, you can go with PureVPN which is quite inexpensive for the value and benefits it offers.

For more information, see this PIA VPN review in Canada.

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But if you still want to revive PIA and get it to work again in Canada, there is hope yet.

Want to get the best deals on VPNs offering up to 70% Off? Check out our exclusive Black Friday VPN deals in Canada coming up in 2023.