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Programs for Travellers

Canadian Programs

Citizenship and Immigration Canada, in partnership with the Canada Border Services Agency, offers the following programs to simplify your border crossing.

	CANPASS For pre-approved low-risk travellers who are: crossing the border by private or corporate aircraft; or crossing by private boat; or crossing by commercial air carrier
	CANPASS – Remote Area Border Crossing For pre-approved low-risk travellers crossing the Canadian border at certain remote areas
	The Commercial Driver Registry Program (CDRP) For pre-approved low-risk commercial carriers and drivers

Joint Canada-United States Programs

Citizenship and Immigration Canada, the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency, the United States Immigration and Naturalization Service and the United States Customs Service, also offer programs to simplify your border crossing. They are initiatives under the joint Canada-United States 30 Point Action Plan of the Smart Border Declaration, signed in December 2001.

	NEXUS For pre-approved low-risk travellers in private motor vehicles
	Free and Secure Trade (FAST) For pre-approved low-risk commercial carriers, drivers and importers
	NEXUS Air (coming soon) For pre-approved low-risk commercial air travellers

CANPASS

Private and Corporate Aircraft Program
If you often fly to Canada directly from the United States and land at small airports, the CANPASS Private Aircraft Program may be for you. Once screened and approved, CANPASS members have permission to land any time at any of the 123 Airports of Entry (AOEs) and at an additional 53 CANPASS Only (CPOs) sites across Canada. These designated sites may enable a CANPASS member to land at an airport that is closer to their final destination. All flights originating outside of Canada (including returning flights) must report to the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency at a site designated for customs clearances purposes.

• For more information on Private Aircraft Program
• Application Form – Private Aircraft
• For more information on Corporate Aircraft Program
• Application Forms: Corporate Aircraft E672 AND Corporate Aircraft E679

Private Boats Program
The CANPASS Private Boats Program combines a telephone reporting system with a pre-approval permit for recreational boaters. The program allows boaters, who have passed a security clearance and have been enrolled, the option of calling customs before they arrive to receive clearance to enter Canada. Travellers may declare goods by telephone, and can pay any applicable duties by credit card. Those who want to pay cash have to report to the nearest customs office.

• For more information on Private Boats Program
• Application Form – Private Boats

CANPASS-Air
A program called CANPASS-Air, will facilitate efficient and secure entry into Canada for pre-approved, low-risk air travellers. Formerly referred to as the Expedited Passenger Processing System, CANPASS-Air will allow pre-approved travellers to clear immigration and customs by simply looking into a camera that recognizes the iris of their eyes as proof of their identity.

CANPASS – Remote Area Border Crossing

The CANPASS – Remote Area Border Crossing (RABC) permit, a joint initiative of Citizenship and Immigration Canada and the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency, allows the bearer to cross the border into Canada at certain remote areas without reporting to a port of entry, as long as imported goods are declared.

• For more information
• Application form

Commercial Driver Registration Program (CDRP)

The CDRP program simplifies crossing the border for low-risk commercial drivers. Also, the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency offers approved importers an expedited clearance process for certain commercial goods called the Customs Self-Assessment (CSA). The CSA clearance process requires CSA-approved carriers to use registered drivers. If you are a resident of Canada, you will be able to make a personal declaration by completing a traveller declaration card and giving it to a customs inspector. You will not have to come into the customs office to pay any duty or taxes because they will be billed to your credit card.

• For more information
• Application form

Free and Secure Trade (FAST) Program

FAST is a joint program between Canada and the United States that allows low-risk companies to expedite the movement of low-risk shipments in either direction across the border. The importer and carrier must be authorized and the driver must be registered in order to be eligible to participate. When a shipment arrives at the border, it will be processed through a dedicated lane, thereby speeding up the process.

Goods cleared through the FAST program will remain subject to physical examinations. However, given the low-risk nature of the goods, and that the driver, carrier and importer are known partners of Canadian and American customs and immigration, these goods will be examined at a significantly lower rate than other imported goods.

• For more information

NEXUS

NEXUS is designed to simplify border crossings for pre-approved, low-risk travellers. Unlike CANPASS (Canada) and PORTPASS (U.S.), NEXUS is harmonized, which means that participants will fill out only one membership application allowing entry to both Canada and the United States. Participants in the NEXUS program use dedicated NEXUS lanes to cross the border and are not subject to regular customs and immigration questioning, simplifying their entry into Canada and the United States.

• For more information

NEXUS Air (Coming Soon)

Canada and the United States are currently working together to design and implement a NEXUS Air pilot program for commercial air travellers. Once in place, the NEXUS Air pilot will facilitate entry to Canada and the United States for pre-approved low-risk, frequent air travellers using automated kiosks with iris-recognition biometric technology.

• For more information