Rapid Travel Chai

A flurry of reports that Canada is eliminating paper declaration cards left me confused as to what to expect in arriving Canada.

Piecing it together:

Does this apply to land arrivals?

No.

Does this apply to sea arrivals?

No.

Does this apply to air arrivals?

Yes, if the airport has new Primary Inspection Kiosks.

What airports have Primary Inspection Kiosks?

Ottawa (YOW) is the first, launching March 20, 2017. Other airports will follow in 2017-18.

Must you use Primary Inspection Kiosks?

No, you can be processed by a border services officer.

Will Canadian border services officers be any more friendly?

We wish! How is it possible to find some many grumpy people in one of the friendliest countries in the world?

What about those kiosks at airports like Toronto?

Dustbin, I suppose. Totally separate from these new Primary Inspection Kiosks.

I already have the CanBorder app. Where is the eDeclaration?

Yes, but you don’t have the new, separate CanBorder eDeclaration app for this purpose. See both here on Google Play and here on Apple iTunes.

What about this CanBorder eDeclaration app?

You can only use the CanBorder eDeclaration app at airports that have Primary Inspection Kiosks. If you use it, you’ll have a scannable QR code to shorten the Primary Inspection Kiosk process.

How about NEXUS members?

NEXUS kiosks will be updated and stay separate from the Primary Inspection Kiosks. NEXUS kiosks will not work with the CanBorder eDeclaration app. (Travel Codex shares an email sent to members.)