I have to head to San Diego for some meetings next week. Guy at work was telling me he didn't think a person could use Nexus for business travel. That sounds crazy to me, is it true?

No, it's not.

However, if you are carrying certain types of business materials you might not be allowed to use NEXUS.

Could you expand on the business materials Ken? I'll just have my laptop and maybe one of these without the plastics.

From the members guide - http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/publicati...f5095-eng.html

"Note: If you have any commercial goods in your possession or baggage or on board the vehicle/recreational boat upon arrival in Canada or the United States, you may not use NEXUS in the air, land or marine modes of transportation. Commercial goods are defined as goods brought into Canada or the United States for sale or for any commercial, industrial, occupational, institutional or other similar use and include samples, tools and warranty repair parts.

Personal computers and similar items carried by NEXUS members for their own personal use while on business trips are not considered commercial goods."

Assuming you're bring those for use (and not to try and sell them), they would both be fine. The Nexus page even specifically notes that laptops are exempt from that rule. The concern would be things like samples or other such things. Even pamphlets are considered to be offside.

IMO the best way to think of it is as follows:
Are you carrying any physical item that could be used to sell, exhibit or repair your company's products? If so, you are likely offside.

As far as I am aware, you're statement is not quite correct.

The laptops you mention that are exempted are specifically listed as "personal computers" and then goes onto specify "for their [member's] own personal use while on business trips. I always took the "personal computer" mention to mean a laptop you own. I always understood that a company laptop - i.e. one that is given to you by the company you work for to use - or if you were using your own personal computer to do work for a company, then that would be considered a "commercial good," and therefore, would require waiting in the normal line.

I do understand in the latter scenario, would probably be difficult for an agent to prove. And I would also be ecstatic if I could be proven wrong.

Last time, I did do the regular line both ways because I had my coprorate laptop with me (but no selling, exhibiting, repairing, etc. - just to get some work done). Funny, main reason for my trip was personal, but was working for one day while traveling to Canada. I had to check that my primary purpose of the trip was personal, but that I was carrying a "commercial good."

After all this, I called the CBSA 800 number and told them what had happened and asked what I needed to do to make and appointment, hoping that I would be told no appointment was needed. The CBSA rep on the phone told me to call the NEXUS office that I wanted to have the iris scans at directly. Maybe it is local policy at YVR and YYZ that appointments are not needed? Has anyone out there successfully had an iris scan enrollment at YUL without and appointment?

Question:

I'm on the executive of a non-profit board. Once a year I travel to a conference to the US on behalf of this organization and thus have to deal with Customs. I have NEXUS/GE.

When I went to the conference in Florida at the beginning of May, I checked off that I was traveling for business even though I am not compensated for the work I am doing. (I am paid a per diem plus air and hotel, but on the whole I spend a few bucks to go.)

It occurred to me that what I do may not be considered business. I'm not selling products or services. I'm going on behalf of our members and I report back to them.

Business, or personal?

I don't know the level of proof that you need, however I can give you anecdotal evidence that a corporate laptop would not be considered a commercial good.

I cross the border almost weekly and usually have my corporate laptop with me. I have been sent to secondary a few time going into the US and a few times coming back to Canada. I have had my laptop bag searched (my laptop has a prominent sticker on it that says "property of XYZ company") and nobody has questioned it. I've carried wireless routers to setup an FTP server for document distribution at meetings and they have never questioned it. When my original Nexus Air was changed so they could be used at land crossings I used to declare that I had a corporate laptop but early on I was told by an agent that I didn't need to declare it.

From a purely observational perspective, look at the people using the Nexus lines. Most of them will be business travelers and almost all of them will have a laptop used primarily for business and many of them would be corporate owned.

I can help you sort this out because I've had a couple conversations with the US CBP and Canadian customs folks about this when I have said my visit is for business reasons.

Most certainly your laptop (and misc sundry like Mifi routers or a personal hub you might need for your own use, regardless of who actually owns it) is not a commercial good.

Most certainly samples are a commercial good and you cannot use Nexus when you have them, though occasionally this gets overlooked (though you risk losing your Nexus card). If you're for example mailing a package to someone you sold something over the internet to (like through ebay) it's commercial goods.

PhotoJim, what you are doing IS business, even though you are not compensated. The purpose of the trip is a business related thing (even though it's non profit). Whether or not you are being paid is irrelavent. If you were being paid, then you might get denied entry without an appropriate work visa.

One thing I've been thinking about for a long time and can't understand its logic: Why is that when we travel by car or ferry we can use the enhanced driver's license to cross the border between Canada and USA and if we travel by airplane we can not use the same tool :confused:

Isn't the issue here is to enter both countries at the end in easiness or is it that travel by air is less secure than land that both countries require a passport to do cross border travel ?

Why both Canada and USA don't adapt the same travel system that is implemented in the European countries and facilitate travel between the two countries in order to attract tourists and business from other places in the world !!!

Once in a while, they point at the Canadian border and claim it's the source of terrorists. Keep fear alive.

When you arrive at an airport from out of Canada, you enter a common line that includes flights arriving from potentially anywhere in the world. The enhanced license is not an alternative to a passport and therefore can't be used where a passport is a requirement for all. If you are entering the US at a Canadian airport, you are not necessarily entering from Canada only. The difference with land/ferry travel is that you have to be arriving from either the US or Canada by necessity.

immigration officers know very well where you are coming from... is on their systems..

I still can use Europe as an efficient model: In all european airports have dedicated lanes for european passport or national ID holders with expedite entry and other lanes for all other countries passport holders and they still doing well and entry is quite fast and effecient.

And I am sure immigration officers on both sides of the borders can distinguishe between Canada and USA citizens from other countries citizens ;)