Ari

That isn't accurate.

You need to have proof of citizenship in addition to your NEXUS card to enter Canada on a NEXUS card in the NEXUS air mode; a passport is just one form of proof of citizenship accepted by CBSA. A birth certificate is another. Those are based on the the Canada entry rules for air which never changed; for land, the card alone is sufficient under CBSA's new policy.

For entry to the US on a NEXUS card, one only needs the card (read the WHTI CFR if you don't believe this; the links below also shed light on the requirements).

The relaxed passport requirements for NEXUS members have been in place since the program started; in fact, obviating the need for a passport is one of the purposes of the program.

http://www.cbp.gov/travel/trusted-tr...programs/nexus

https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/det.../619/related/1

Pretty clear "either/or" language from CBP.

flyerCO

Since when? There's no such rule. In fact it's the opposite. The Nexus card is all that is needed to enter US directly from Canada.

Antonio8069

While it is nice to see a 2011 thread revived, I think you best read the entire thread....

My understanding is the t&c's of NEXUS require you to carry your passport with you i.e. yes you can use NEXUS to check in and for government issued photo ID but but need to be prepared to produce your passport if requested to do so.

Also, at Canadian airports, I now have a choice of NEXUS or Global Entry. GE requires me to scan my passport!

It only makes senses. NEXUS cards can be revoked if you fail to comply with the t&c's so why risk it?

IMO, AC agents on trans border flights always request to see my passport.

CKDGM

According to a letter sent to NEXUS members a few months ago, the preclearance airports now have GE kiosks that will read either a passport or a NEXUS card.

That said, it's still a very good idea to have your passport with you, since it's simpler to show it than to miss your flight while you argue with the airline agent or border control officer. Even if you're both right and eventually proven to be right, you're still late for your plane.

ESpen36

Hopefully the GE kiosks located inside the USA at major airports will be upgraded to allow them to accept NEXUS/SENTRI/GE cards as well as passport books. It would be much more convenient than needing to dig out the passport book to use the kiosks.

Ari

Your understanding as to the NEXUS rules is mistaken. It is an alternative to use of a passport when used in the Air, Land or Sea mode subject to certain rules. Carrying a passport isn't one of them.

Actually, NEXUS cards work in GE kiosks in preclearance airports!

GUWonder

Are "designated Canadian airports" all Canadian airports with US-bound flights or just a subset of Canadian airports with US-bound flights? It sounds like allowance to fly to the U.S. with a NEXUS card but w/o passport isn't applicable to all flights from all Canadian airports to the US (even as it is applicable to most flights from Canada to the US). Are all Canadian non-CBP PreClearance airports included as "designated Canadian airports" for this purpose of flying to the US with a NEXUS card but without a passport? I have some doubt about that, but don't know the answer at this point.

CKDGM

Just a subset; that subset being the set of Canadian airports participating in NEXUS that have US preclearance facilities. (Not that you can find this list anywhere on the CBP website, of course! It's on the CBSA's website, though....) When NEXUS Air started, I think that list was just YVR; now it's all the preclearance airports. (You can also enter Canada at YTZ using NEXUS, but since YTZ doesn't have preclearance you can't enter the US there.)

According to the WHTI Final Rule for air travel:
This was written before the various NEXUS programs were combined and integrated, making the current NEXUS card the successor to the "NEXUS Air" card. (Also, the NEXUS Air kiosks at US preclearance have been replaced by Global Entry kiosks that will read a NEXUS card or a passport.)

GUWonder

Thanks for the additional information.

Isn't there still at least one Canadian airport with US CBP PreClearance facilities that aren't used for some US-bound flights from such airport? If so, would that mean or have meant that -- post-WHTI -- that NEXUS card holders would have to have a passport even when flying from a Canadian airport to the U.S. from a terminal and/or on an airline without CBP PreClearance even as other flights from the very same airport (by another airline) using CBP PreClearance meant that other NEXUS card users could fly without a passport?

I'm just trying to figure out if the applicability is/was actually more nuanced -- at least historically -- (or meant to be more nuanced) than just "designated Canadian airports".

flyerCO

Why the hate? I replied to your posting from Oct 2014. Not something you posted in 2011.

As others and I have stated there is no such rule. CBP has and continues to accept Nexus without passport. There's no requirement to have it with you. The Nexus card is actually considered proof of citizenship, thus no need for passport.

sunilove

Can you fly out of Vancouver, BC with only a Nexus card? Are there restrictions as to where you can fly to with only a Nexus card? We traveled last year out of Vancouver with only a Nexus card to Florida and then went on a cruise to Haiti, Jamaica, Cozomel and Grand Cayman with no problems. I would like to know if this is still possible as I just found out my children need the long form birth certificate to apply for a passport and I may not have time to get both now without Canadian express fees.

Often1

As to the US: The US requires that you have a passport available for inspection if asked when entering the US by air with a NEXUS card. You weren't asked and likely won't be. But, if you are, your kids won't be boarding their flight. At least they will know before departure because you are departing from a pre-clearance station.

On the return, the US requires that you have a passport in order to depart by air. As there are no exit checks from the US, it would only be the carrier's check which can trip you up.

It's all about your risk tolerance. Are you willing to run the risk of having your kids left behind in Canada in order to save the fees?

CKDGM

"citation needed".

Where is this requirement?

It's not in the DHS's own WHTI Final Rule for air travel, in "IV. Conclusion":
"Accordingly, United States and Canadian citizens who present an NEXUS Air card when using a NEXUS Air kiosk, would continue to be exempt from the requirement to present a passport when arriving in the United States at air ports-of-entry."

It's not in the CBP website's list of WHTI document requirements for air travel:
"All U.S. citizens and nonimmigrant aliens from Canada, Bermuda, and Mexico departing from or entering the United States from within the Western Hemisphere at air ports of entry are required to present a valid passport, NEXUS card (if utilizing a NEXUS kiosk when departing from a designated Canadian airport), Merchant Mariner Document (for U.S. citizens traveling on official business), or Military Identification Card (for members of the U.S. armed forces traveling on official orders). Note that children are also required to present their own passport when traveling by air."

Ari

You are wrong. Read the CFR and quit fear-mongering.

SEA1K4EVR

For the travel between the US and Canada the Nexus card should be fine... however I'm surprised your cruise line allowed you to board without a passport since you were visiting those Caribbean countries.