Practical Travel Safety Issues - Waiting time for a NEXUS interview?

I've just received a conditional approval for NEXUS and tried to schedule an interview on-line. I live near Ottawa, so YOW is the logical centre to use, but the first available interview is July 12. I am (unfortunately) at YYZ quite a lot, so I tried that centre next. There are no interviews available period at YYZ.

Is this normal? Can I just drop by the YOW centre and be interviewed? Or am I going to have to wait until July 12?

Thanks

I've just received a conditional approval for NEXUS and tried to schedule an interview on-line. I live near Ottawa, so YOW is the logical centre to use, but the first available interview is July 12. I am (unfortunately) at YYZ quite a lot, so I tried that centre next. There are no interviews available period at YYZ.

Is this normal? Can I just drop by the YOW centre and be interviewed? Or am I going to have to wait until July 12?

Thanks

You can't just drop in, that's for sure!

You can wait until July 12th, or choose another enrollment certer. I did my interview in Seattle, and I think they aren't that busy on account of not being on the border. I was lucky to be traveling there.

I've just received a conditional approval for NEXUS and tried to schedule an interview on-line. I live near Ottawa, so YOW is the logical centre to use, but the first available interview is July 12. I am (unfortunately) at YYZ quite a lot, so I tried that centre next. There are no interviews available period at YYZ.

Is this normal? Can I just drop by the YOW centre and be interviewed? Or am I going to have to wait until July 12?

Thanks

I had a similar issue with SEA, dates were 4-6 weeks out. I kept checking the calendar for cancelations, people tend to cancel 1-5 days out if they are going to cancel and found two appointments, one for 2/21(too soon) which was the next day and at 10:00 AM the week of the 27th. I took the one for next week. No appointments the rest of February, not a single one in March to mid April. Check frequently, you may luck out.

Try Detroit. That never looked busy when I was scheduling my appointment...

I was able to make my appt. in Detroit within a week of my conditional approval, but keep in mind that the Nexus interview site is at the foot of the Ambassador bridge near downtown, not at DTW. Also keep in mind that the Detroit Nexus site does not do iris scans, so once you get your Nexus card you'll have to go somewhere else, like YYZ, for the iris scan, although an iris scan for a Nexus card holder does not require an appt. (you can just do it on a walk-in basis - we drove from Detroit to Toronto to visit friends and stopped at YYZ and the whole process, including parking the car in short term parking, only took 30 min.).

I had a similar issue with SEA, dates were 4-6 weeks out. I kept checking the calendar for cancelations, people tend to cancel 1-5 days out if they are going to cancel and found two appointments, one for 2/21(too soon) which was the next day and at 10:00 AM the week of the 27th. I took the one for next week. No appointments the rest of February, not a single one in March to mid April. Check frequently, you may luck out.

That was my experience also as my first available interview date was 3+ months in the future so accepted it and then checked every day for a week or so and found another time pop up with about 10 days notice so grabbed it.

There is a Megathread in the AC forum on the topic in case OP wants to wade through it. ;) Good luck!

That was my experience also as my first available interview date was 3+ months in the future so accepted it and then checked every day for a week or so and found another time pop up with about 10 days notice so grabbed it.

There is a Megathread in the AC forum on the topic in case OP wants to wade through it. ;) Good luck!
Thanks for the advice. After trying for more than a week, I managed to get an interview at YOW for the end of April. I will continue trying -- maybe I can get one even sooner.

You guys are either very lucky or we, Canadians are screwed big time...
I've paid the NEXUS application fee on Mar 2 and STILL am in "Pending Review" status.
Of course the maximum 8 (EIGHT!) weeks time has passed, so I've wrote an e-mail to CBP Ombudsman and have received the following answer:
"Please continue to monitor your GOES account. The CBP Trusted Traveler Program has experienced an increased volume of applications which unfortunately has caused some processing delays. CBP is actively addressing the backlog and apologizes for the delay."
I also found a phone number to call and the nice guy with Indian accent politely explained to me that there are NO MORE time estimates - all I have to do is to WAIT INDEFINITELY until the status is changed.
I'll wait patiently to see if I can reach a quarter or may be a year waiting time.
Talking about new jobs - maybe US state administration should take a look at CBP and open few new positions to get the huge backlog issue fixed?... ;-)

You guys are either very lucky or we, Canadians are screwed big time...
I've paid the NEXUS application fee on Mar 2 and STILL am in "Pending Review" status.
Of course the maximum 8 (EIGHT!) weeks time has passed, so I've wrote an e-mail to CBP Ombudsman and have received the following answer:

I also found a phone number to call and the nice guy with Indian accent politely explained to me that there are NO MORE time estimates - all I have to do is to WAIT INDEFINITELY until the status is changed.
I'll wait patiently to see if I can reach a quarter or may be a year waiting time.
Talking about new jobs - maybe US state administration should take a look at CBP and open few new positions to get the huge backlog issue fixed?... ;-)



Call on the phone and they'll tell you more. I called before the 8 weeks were over, and the exact day it turned 8 weeks my goes account was updated saying i was approved and able to schedule an interview and that I had 30 days to schedule one. Hope it helps!

My girlfriend (Canadian) applied in early March and is still waiting - for her renewal. Its getting pretty ridiculous.

Call on the phone and they'll tell you more. I called before the 8 weeks were over, and the exact day it turned 8 weeks my goes account was updated saying i was approved and able to schedule an interview and that I had 30 days to schedule one. Hope it helps!

Could you please PM me the phone number? I sent an email and got a generic cut and paste response. Been waiting 7 weeks for my NEXUS application, still says "pending review".

My GF finally got hers, basically at the 8 week mark. Seems like the new normal.

I had a similar issue with SEA, dates were 4-6 weeks out. I kept checking the calendar for cancelations, people tend to cancel 1-5 days out if they are going to cancel and found two appointments, one for 2/21(too soon) which was the next day and at 10:00 AM the week of the 27th. I took the one for next week. No appointments the rest of February, not a single one in March to mid April. Check frequently, you may luck out.

Seems like SEA is far worse now, a year later. Soonest appointments usually show around 6 months later, although sooner dates do appear randomly.

I was able to get April 6 and 7 through others' cancellations, but I am seeking a date from April 1-3. Are my chances slim?

And for family appointments, if I can find just one time slot, can I bring the whole family in?

Thank you very much.