Through YYZ T1 last week and two of the three kiosks were out of commission and the third kept rejecting every other person! Finally used the Special Services desk once two wheelchair assists were finished there. Truly pathetic, the sooner we get the new machines the better. And let's hope they're the same as the GE kiosks or if still retina-scan, there's a hood to look into instead of this ridiculous method (move left, move back, move forward...).

CBSA could use the GE/NEXUS database maintained by CBP. Also, it would save members a trip to Canada to get their irises scanned. Once the fingerprints are in the system, you'd be able to use the machines on either side.

Gas/Groceries and Change of Travel Plans
 

Hi all,

Going for my interview soon. Canadian in Canada. I wanted to know a few things -

1) Gas and Groceries
if I get groceries, let's say I spend $100 or $150 (both high numbers) at Trader Joes, and I follow Canada's strict laws about what I can bring in - I have my receipts with me - Can I do a verbal declaration (rather then itemizing groceries?!) That's what I do right now in the regular line - and have my receipts with me.

2) Card vs Verbal
To be honest, I don't understand the card vs. verbal declaration - seems you formerly could only do the card, and now you can do either, (which favours the verbal declaration? Can someone explain?

3) Change of Plans while in US
On occasion I've had to extend my trip into the United States, which is not a problem just travelling over there - since you're allowed 6 months.
Hypothetical scenario: Let's say I'm planning a 4 day trip, and stay 6 days. Now I have Nexus, is that an issue, since my plans changed, and I didn't lie (never do).

If you are driving back, I was told to just say I wanted to do a verbal. I do the Trader Joes run every month as well and have never had a problem. I usually have several hundred dollars in groceries and dog food. Just cruise up to the window and do a verbal declaration. No problem at all.

When flying to the US, you have to do the US Declaration card if you use the Nexus machine (I am talking pre-clearance here) but no card if you use the GE machine - the questions are on the screen and you get a printout with your photo on it that you hand to the CBP officer. That's why I always use the GE machine - well that, and a lot of Nexus users think they HAVE to use the Nexus machine only and line up like sheep whilst the GE kiosks are empty. I've tried so many times to tell them they can use GE but they don't believe me. 'I am Canadian, I have Nexus so I have to use the Nexus ones'. Fine with me, I just breeze on by.

When returning by air, you do have to do the card even though the machines ask the same questions. You hand it to the CBSA officer along with the kiosk printout as you exit.

I don't cross on land, so by air this is a non-issue. I never speak to anyone or have to state my duration of stay. My last trip was open-ended, depending on what arrangements I lined up while I was there. One way ticket there, and no problem. By land, or if I was ever randomly selected for interview, I imagine that if I had a possibly flexible trip, I would at least suspect that to be the case as I made my way there, and maybe give an upper bound of the duration.

CBP is getting rid of the NEXUS machines in the preclearance areas, going GE only.

A lot of long-time Nexusites don't have their fingerprints on file, so they can't use GE.

The removal of the Nexus machines will force them to get the fingerprints done.

Are you a dual citizen with Canada and/or the US?

While Canadian passports should work for Canadian citizens, I was told in no uncertain terms that as a US and Canadian dual citizen, the GE machines would only accept my US passport and not my Canadian (it sounded like the authorization on the machines was limited to one passport, but I'm not entirely sure if that's technically true or policy limitation or something else). I've never tried with my Canadian, but assume it wouldn't work.

If you are a US permanent resident (green card holder) your passport certainly won't work - you need to use the PR card in the GE machine (my wife is in that situation and she did try her passport (Canadian) once by accident - it didn't work at all). Not sure what the deal is for Canadian PRs with the GE machines.

I read somewhere one of the reasons that CBP decided to drop the nexus kiosks in the pre-clearance areas is the high maintenance cost for these machines while the GE kiosks are much cheaper to maintain.

My daughter is in that situation, and has never had a US passport, just a birth certificate having moved to Canada at 18 months. When they remove the NEXUS machines, I expect she won't be able to use the GE machine. I wonder, can you go to special services / crew lane, as you can when when arriving at YYZ and NEXUS machines are down? The only other option, I guess, would be a US passport card for her. I understand it's cheaper than passport.

Passport cards are not good for air travel, you'll have to get her a passport book. Surprising they let her through with just a birth certificate as you are supposed to carry your passport when using Nexus in air mode.

She has a Canadian passport, which is 100% legal for travel. It's just not preferred by the US people who don't like to acknowledge that there are other passports in the world. So for proving her US citizenship, she also has the birth certificate with her. I thought the passport card would be sufficient to use the GE machine. However, it is entirely speculative on my part that the passport card has the >>>> barcode information rows like the passport books do.
Adding: my NEXUS card has that barcode information on it, and I use my NEXUS card in the GE machine and never seem to need to remove my passport from my purse any more. However, the letter that came with HER card made reference to using "the US passport" in the machine, not "the passport" but "the US passport". That, obviously, is different than my letter, since I am not a US citizen. (My instructions said to use my passport in the machine, but I use my card and it works.)
She has only travelled without me since getting the NEXUS so she did not want to try it on her own, and the first time we are travelling together is not until November, unless something comes up, so I hope if anyone else is a dual citizen with no US passport, they can keep the thread updated with what happens in those machines if you try using the NEXUS card and not US passport.

Technically speaking, a returning US citizen must use a valid US passport to enter the country. A friend of mine is also dual US-Canadian and would enter the US on her Canadian passport - that passport is littered with US entry stamps marked as "noncompliant" for not using a US passport to enter the country. She was held up multiple times due to that and also threatened with a fine once before finally getting a US passport.

Similarly, as a dual US-South African, I must use my US passport to enter the US, and my South African passport to enter South Africa.

The guys at CBP are very tough with the entry of a US citizen on a non US passport.To make life easier just use your US passport at any US entry point and avoid the hassle with CBP @:-)

Indeed it does. The information on the passport card is in a different order than on the passport. It's similar to the NEXUS card: top row has a code for document type and document numbers; middle row has birthdate, sex, expiration date; bottom row has name. The passport card has some additional numbers on the first two rows that the NEXUS card doesn't have. Mine have "USA" on both the top and middle rows; I assume one is for citizenship and the other is for issuing country. Not sure why, but my passport card has my middle name in that coded section, but my NEXUS card does not.