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Entering Canada from US

PMM

VIP Member
Jun 30, 2005
25,494
1,946
Hi


Because rental companies in the US rent US vehicles, and rental companies in Canada rent Canadian vehicles.
1. Actually a lot of them do. People do a one way rental from Canada to the US in a Canadian plated car. (happens all the time in Vancouver during cruise ship season) and the rental car is happy to do a one way from US to Canada so they don't have to truck it back.
 

mats

Hero Member
Nov 2, 2010
464
38
Category........
Visa Office......
London
NOC Code......
3113
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
App. Filed.......
21-01-2011
AOR Received.
18-03-2011
Med's Done....
18-03-2012
Passport Req..
Sent 19-03-2012
VISA ISSUED...
30-Mar-2012
LANDED..........
12-July-2012
when you enter US, do you tell the US agents you are entering US to go to canada with an expired PR?
No , tell them your traveling onward to Canada. If they ask your status in Canada you can mention you are permanent resident of Canada. In my 8-9 time of transit via US, only once they asked to see the PR card. You can keep a copy of your e-cas status just in case and that should suffice I think, though I haven't traveled with an expired PR card yet.
 

taco123

Full Member
Apr 9, 2017
46
0
No , tell them your traveling onward to Canada. If they ask your status in Canada you can mention you are permanent resident of Canada. In my 8-9 time of transit via US, only once they asked to see the PR card. You can keep a copy of your e-cas status just in case and that should suffice I think, though I haven't traveled with an expired PR card yet.
Thanks . Hamiltonapplicant crossed from US into Canada with an expired PR so I thought he may describe his experience with the US agents.
 

HamiltonApplicant

Hero Member
Apr 3, 2017
488
122
Hamilton
Visa Office......
Munich, Germany
App. Filed.......
Jan 2007
Med's Request
Dec 2009
Med's Done....
Jan 2010
Passport Req..
Apr 2010
VISA ISSUED...
May 2010
LANDED..........
25-11-2010
Thanks . Hamiltonapplicant crossed from US into Canada with an expired PR so I thought he may describe his experience with the US agents.
I have not crossed from US to Canada with an expired PR, I have entered Canad without a PR card, using CoPR.
 

HamiltonApplicant

Hero Member
Apr 3, 2017
488
122
Hamilton
Visa Office......
Munich, Germany
App. Filed.......
Jan 2007
Med's Request
Dec 2009
Med's Done....
Jan 2010
Passport Req..
Apr 2010
VISA ISSUED...
May 2010
LANDED..........
25-11-2010
Ok. Sorry. WHen entering US, did the US agents ask you for your Canada PR card? what did you tell them?
Yes, while entering USA from Canada, they indeed asked me about my status is Canada, nature of my work, etc. They never asked me to show the proof of PR status though...
 

ranjan05

Star Member
May 22, 2012
84
2
Please somebody share his/ her actual experience while entering entering USA on B1/B2 from another country like India. Purpose of visit is to enter Canada on expired PR card. If they ask can we sh
 

dpenabill

VIP Member
Apr 2, 2010
6,252
3,018
when you enter US, do you tell the US agents you are entering US to go to canada with an expired PR?
No , tell them your traveling onward to Canada. If they ask your status in Canada you can mention you are permanent resident of Canada. In my 8-9 time of transit via US, only once they asked to see the PR card. You can keep a copy of your e-cas status just in case and that should suffice I think, though I haven't traveled with an expired PR card yet.
Yes, while entering USA from Canada, they indeed asked me about my status is Canada, nature of my work, etc. They never asked me to show the proof of PR status though...
The response from mats covers it.

I am posting just to note that what U.S. border officers can and sometimes do ask can range very, very widely, and be remarkably probing and sometimes rather unfriendly in manner.

Even a U.S. citizen can be asked to present proof of status in another country . . . while it has happened only occasionally, I have been asked to present my Canadian PR card, when I was a PR, and more recently asked to present my Canadian passport . . . but on another occasion it apparently irked the border officer when I responded to his question (asked while he was holding my U.S. passport): "your citizenship?" by saying "I am both a U.S. and Canadian citizen," leading to him repeating the question in a harsh tone and almost hostile manner. Apparently, "I am a U.S. citizen," was the only answer he wanted to hear.

(Note, for example, I have been questioned by the U.S. side about my reasons for living in Canada. While generally I emphatically encourage responding to all questions by answering truthfully, for this question prudence dictated not disclosing the nature or extent of my discontent, let alone disdain and contempt, for the U.S. . . . for many years now I have minimized how often I go, and even more so how long I stay in the U.S., despite how much family I have there, most of whom I have not seen for many, many years now.)

This is not to suggest there is an elevated risk of problems transiting the U.S. (with some all too obvious exceptions rooted in all too blatant elements of discriminatory biases). Travelers with status to enter the U.S. may have to answer questions beyond the scope of what appears to be relevant, but so long as the traveler is polite, responsive, honest (to a degree, as noted above), and does not trigger concerns about overstaying or otherwise violating the terms and conditions of his or her status, there should not be a problem. The questions can be more probing and take longer than what seems reasonable, but remaining calm (even if an officer gets loud and hostile, which can happen, which has happened to me albeit only rarely) and polite, and responsive, will help to get through it.

Once the traveler arrives at the Canadian PoE, an expired PR card in conjunction with a passport (to verify identity) should almost always work well (subject to a referral to Secondary if there is any question about the PR's compliance with PR obligations, which is mostly about the PR Residency Obligation . . . and even if this happens, entry into Canada will be allowed . . . even if there is a report for inadmissibility, the PR will be allowed to enter Canada). But virtually any other documentation which refers to the PR's status, which shows the PR's client number, can make establishing identity and status easier and faster. Ultimately a passport will suffice for most, since once identity is established then CBSA can determine the traveler's PR status, but this could entail a longer delay at the border while CBSA does various checks to determine and then to verify the traveler's identity and status.
 

taco123

Full Member
Apr 9, 2017
46
0
dpenabill,

so, one can infer from your post that one may ( or may not) face problems with US agents entering US from a third country with a purpose to cross
to canada with an expired PR card ( but with a renewal ecas).
 

dpenabill

VIP Member
Apr 2, 2010
6,252
3,018
dpenabill,

so, one can infer from your post that one may ( or may not) face problems with US agents entering US from a third country with a purpose to cross
to canada with an expired PR card ( but with a renewal ecas).
It is always the case that one may or may not face problems with U.S. border officers. There are many, many variables which can influence which way it goes.

The key factor, of course, is what status the traveler has, as in what authorization to enter the U.S. the traveler has. And whether or not the traveler appears to be acting consistent with that status.

The typical problem reported is from those travelers who declare they are only transiting the U.S. but they do not have or do not present if asked, documentation showing purchased transportation to continue the trip to Canada. Many reports indicate that if and when such travelers offer a reasonable, credible explanation, such as they have arrangements to continue the trip by private auto, that usually, typically suffices. But of course many other factors and circumstances can influence how this goes. Entering the U.S. in a city far away from the Canadian border, for example, may invite suspicions about the proffered plan to continue the trip by driving to Canada.

Typically the U.S. border officers are not concerned much about the traveler's status in Canada, but more about whether the traveler is truthful when explaining his or her reason for arriving in the U.S. is to transit the U.S. to go to Canada. Obviously, if the U.S. border officer has concerns about the traveler's status to enter Canada, that will lead to huge concerns about the traveler's claim about traveling on to Canada.

But for most travelers with status to travel in the U.S., who have a flight or flights ultimately taking the traveler to a city near Canada (Seattle, Buffalo, Detroit) this tends to be overthinking things. Particularly for those who have traveled in the U.S. previously.

It is impossible to forecast precisely what questions will be asked. There is little to be gained by attempting to script one's answers in advance. Nonetheless, it can help to be prepared generally to deal with some more or less likely inquiries. For example:

Purpose of trip?
Flying to Buffalo (or wherever) and from there traveling on to Canada. What is your status in Canada? I am a Canadian PR. Can you show me your status card (PR card)? [Present PRC, including expired PR card if that is what the traveler has. Or . . . answer] I do not have one with me, but I have xxxx [and wait to see if the officer asks to see that alternative documentation . . . CoPR probably better than any thing other than a PR card (including expired PR card), but letters or eCas printout, whatever the traveling PR has, could help.]

And so on. There may be further questions to verify both the plans to travel on to Canada and having status to travel to Canada. There may be questions about where in Canada the traveler lives or works. These will ordinarily be merely questions to verify that the traveler is not going to stay in the U.S. or work in the U.S. or otherwise is not likely to do what the traveler claims he or she is doing. This can and usually will go smoothly for a traveler with regular status to travel in the U.S. But it can get more difficult, more probing, sometimes more confrontational, depending on the officer's demeanor and the officer's suspicions. Best to stay calm. Give honest and direct answers. Be patient. And ride out any stormy performance the officer might engage in.

But nonetheless, how it goes for any particular individual depends on many factors relevant to that particular individual. Travelers who are nationals in Western European countries might anticipate smoother sailing compared to those from the ME. Travelers with a more extensive history of travel in the U.S. with no indication of any breach of U.S. laws or rules are likely to have an easier time of it than those with minimal travel history in the U.S. Just the traveler's demeanor and way of answering questions can tend to help or not help.

The traveler who tells the U.S. officer he lives in or works in a city a long way from where the traveler says he or she is crossing the border, may face elevated or more skeptical scrutiny, since that might indicate the traveler is not being honest about why he or she is transiting the U.S.

And as noted, more than a few U.S. border officers can be overtly discriminatory toward some travelers. The U.S. is what it is, and these days that has been aggravated some from the top down. Most officers will not be that way. But more than a few will. Unfortunately.
 

cowbeepbeep

Full Member
Aug 23, 2017
38
18
Category........
FSW
Visa Office......
Ottawa
App. Filed.......
14-09-2017
AOR Received.
14-09-2017
Passport Req..
16-11-2017
The response from mats covers it.

Even a U.S. citizen can be asked to present proof of status in another country . . . while it has happened only occasionally, I have been asked to present my Canadian PR card, when I was a PR, and more recently asked to present my Canadian passport . . . but on another occasion it apparently irked the border officer when I responded to his question (asked while he was holding my U.S. passport): "your citizenship?" by saying "I am both a U.S. and Canadian citizen," leading to him repeating the question in a harsh tone and almost hostile manner. Apparently, "I am a U.S. citizen," was the only answer he wanted to hear.
Eh, CBP officers can be awful, but, in slight defense, that's the only answer he needed to make you admissible to the U.S. But it's about like the power trip they get when you are in the wrong line for NEXUS/GE because there aren't actually markings and they get to correct you. Yay border crossings, I guess.
 

HamiltonApplicant

Hero Member
Apr 3, 2017
488
122
Hamilton
Visa Office......
Munich, Germany
App. Filed.......
Jan 2007
Med's Request
Dec 2009
Med's Done....
Jan 2010
Passport Req..
Apr 2010
VISA ISSUED...
May 2010
LANDED..........
25-11-2010
The response from mats covers it.
......, for this question prudence dictated not disclosing the nature or extent of my discontent, let alone disdain and contempt, for the U.S. . . . for many years now I have minimized how often I go, ...............
Quite an indictment of the US!
 

mats

Hero Member
Nov 2, 2010
464
38
Category........
Visa Office......
London
NOC Code......
3113
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
App. Filed.......
21-01-2011
AOR Received.
18-03-2011
Med's Done....
18-03-2012
Passport Req..
Sent 19-03-2012
VISA ISSUED...
30-Mar-2012
LANDED..........
12-July-2012
Important issue to consider entering via US;
If you enter US on a B1/B2 ; what will u tell the US officer about your purpose? If you will tell him you are entering US
to go to Canada by land then he may not let you enter US. If you will tell him something else, then you may have problems
entering US from Canada on your return trip. As you will have to leave US by air to have your departure from US recorded
correctly.
Just want to give a update on traveling into US on B1/B2 with expired PR card. My wife flew into Seattle with B1/B2 and had no issues at all. The CBP officer asked her status in Canada and she replied- permanent resident. Also in the customs declaration card she wrote traveling onward to Canada in the address in US section.
I had gone to pick her up.At the land border crossings in Canada we both handed over our expired PR card and the CBSA officer typed or scanned our card not sure and then he told do you know your card is expired, and I said 'yes sir, I know ' . Have you applied for renewal he asked and I said yes, we have applied for renewal and that's it we crossed over into Canada.
Posting this for the benefit of those who may have questions or concerns about traveling via US with expired PR cards.