US Waiver for Canadians

Recently travelled to the US this past January and discovered the I-94 / I-94w arrival/departure forms are no longer needed. CBP now gathers travelers’ arrival/departure information automatically from their electronic travel records. I've got a bulk of these forms which I would pre-fill prior to my trip that will now make great starter material for the fireplace. For more information see here: http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/id_visa/i-94_instructions/i94_rollout.xml

So you've returned home from a trip to the US to discover that the little I-94 card is still attached to your passport.  If you departed by a commercial airline, your departure from the U.S. can be independently verified, and it shouldn't be necessary to take further action BUT, holding on to your outbound (from the U.S.) boarding pass can help facilitate your reentry next time you come back to the United States. If you departed by land, private vessel or private plane, you will need to take steps to correct the  record . If you do not validate your timely departure from the United States, or, if you cannot reasonably prove you departed within the time frame given to you when you entered, the next time you apply for admission to the U.S., Customs and Border Protection (CBP) may conclude you remained in the U.S. beyond your authorized stay. If this happens, your waiver may be subject to cancellation or you may be returned immediately to Canada. So what can you do? If you f...

Interesting news which may potentially effect I-194 waiver recipients down the line: As part of a new initiative, non-U.S. citizens leaving the United States from Detroit and Atlanta airports should expect to have their biometrics collected before boarding their flights. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers will collect biometrics at the boarding gate from non-U.S. citizens departing from Detroit ; U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers will collect biometrics at security checkpoints from non-U.S. citizens departing from Atlanta . These pilot projects are expected to continue through early July. Non-U.S. citizens departing the United States from all other ports of entry will continue to follow current exit procedures, which require travelers to return their paper Form I-94 (Arrival-Departure Record) or Form I-94W (for Visa Waiver Program travelers) to an airline or ship representative. Read the complete article: DHS Begins Test of Biometric Exit Pro...

First: Happy New Year! Second: I stumbled upon this news clip... The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced in mid-December that it is expanding the categories of non-U.S. citizens required to provide digital fingerprints and a photograph upon entry to the United States. Additional non-U.S. citizens required to provide biometrics include: Lawful permanent residents of the United States (LPRs); Persons entering the United States who seek admission on immigrant visas; and Canadian citizens who are currently required to obtain a Form I-94, Arrival/Departure Document upon entry or require a waiver of inadmissibility to enter the United States. Linking a person’s biometric information to his or her travel documents reduces the risk that a traveler’s identity or documents could be intentionally misused by someone attempting to gain entry into the United States, DHS said in a statement. Biometric collection requirements apply to most non-U.S. citizens, with limited exemptions, e...

get Widget! 2006 saw a resurgence in the number of I-94 admissions to the US at almost 34 million - a level not seen since 2000. There was an obvious dip after 2000 associated to the economy and 9/11. Some say that 2007 is poised to break the records with an increase of I-94 admissions by CBP because of tighter scrutiny and a more streamlined process. Certainly the scrutiny is much tighter than ever before but I would question that the process has been streamlined very much (if at all). Welcome to the bureaucracy of secondary screening: you'll sit idle in a room for on average 60 minutes with other I-194 waiver holders; immigration seekers; refugee claimants; and the odd other visa applicant. Sometimes you'll sit until radically close to your departure time. Other times you'll actually miss your flight. For what? For a CBP officer to take a 30 second secondary look at your waiver. A stamp. Sometimes a smile and you're free to go. I recognize that travel to the US is no...

As most of you long time readers already know - since receiving my waiver just over a year ago I only travel to the US alone and only on business. Well, not anymore. We've just arrived home from our first family vacation to the US since receiving my I-194. The process was surprisingly pretty painless but also probably completely up to the discretion of the inspecting border officer. At the airport pre-clearance I immediately produced my waiver and told the officer that we were headed on a family vacation (my first one with waiver). I currently have an I-94 which is good for multiple entry until February 4th 2008. He did his usual checks: Scanned all of our passports; clarified something with a colleague (not sure if it was about us or about what he was having for lunch); and then quickly let us pass. This time around - no secondary screening! He probably did that to save the trouble of keeping my 2 overly excited children in line. We arrived at the airport 3 hours prior to departur...

Although having a waiver does give you access to US travel it is of course still subject to the discretion of the border officer. On one occasion this was clearly stated to me by one officer (she appeared to be having a bad day) even though after close scrutinizing she did allow me to pass. This article from the Windsor Star points out that it might be a good idea to carry along a record of your conviction ( read the complete article here ). I've never been asked yet to show mine although I do keep all of these supporting documents with me every time I travel: updated passport I-194 waiver document I-94 completed (or previously stamped for multiple entry) completed customs declaration card my travel itinerary showing proof of my return date a copy of my criminal record

As some readers have pointed out, multiple entry cards are possible. On my last occasion going through security the officer, after reviewing my I-194 waiver and my I-94 asked if I travel to the US often. I said yes and to my surprise he said, "well, I'll give you a multiple entry so you don't need to fill out the I-94 each time. Is 6 months enough?" The best part about this is it speeds up my processing (plus I don't have to prefill my I-94 each time I travel). See the enclosed document scan, I'm good until the end of September. Wahoo!

Today I landed in San Francisco. Another of the 6 trips to the United States that I have taken thus far with my I-194 waiver over the past few months. A couple of points from my experience: Processing time is much slower now than in the past (specifically before I needed a waiver to travel to the US). Note: Make sure you arrive at the airport with extra time before your flight! In my experience the officer always reads the waiver and cover letter in full (almost like it is the first time he/she has ever seen anything like it). They almost never ask me questions about it (like, "what did you do"). I always present my waiver right away accompanied by the completed I-94. The officer enters what appears to be a novel into his terminal (I assume it is the details of where I am going and how long I am staying and file numbers). They rarely ask me of my intended intentions in the US (in the past I used to get drilled every trip). Besides the extra time required the proce...

This afternoon I entered the US for the first time in over a year. The border process was quite simple. The airport where I fly out of has US Customs pre-screening. I approached the Officer handed her my passport, declaration and explained that I have a waiver to travel. She reviewed the waiver and asked me to complete a another form (I-94). Turns out that you will need to complete the I-94 every time you enter the US. It is an arrival and departure record. The Officer will give you an end date (when you need to be out of the US). When returning to Canada there is a section of the form that you will drop off with Canada Customs. You can read about it here . After completing the form, she processed me and sent me on to my gate. Strangely, she never asked me what my intentions were to be on this visit (I was heading down to visit a friend).