With Canada Day and U.S. Independence Day approaching, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) has shared a reminder and expected border procedures for travelers in order to have a smoother trip travelling between the two countries.
According to the reminder issued on Monday, CBSA employees will be monitoring travelers to ensure the prevention of entry of harmful goods into Canada.
CBSA says that its employees facilitated the arrival of over 60 million travellers in 2022 while keeping more than 1,100 firearms and 24,400 prohibited weapons off the streets and seized over 41,000 kg of illegal drugs.
To insure a smooth border crossing experience, CBSA recommends considering the following tips:
Plan ahead: Check the border wait times web page and avoid traveling during the peak hours – Monday of holiday long weekends tend to be the busiest – instead, cross the border during non-peak hours such as early in the morning.
Find out your port of entry: If you’re using a GPS application to direct you to a port of entry, you’re advised to check with the CBSA Directory of Offices and Services for the information required to cross.
Use Advance Declaration to save time: Use Advance Declaration, available in Canada’s major airports, to make your customs and immigration declaration to the CBSA prior to your arrival.
Have your travel documents ready: Having travel documents ready helps you to save time while traveling, whether by land, air or water.
Have a consent letter if you’re traveling with a child: Have the consent letter authorizing you to travel with the child if you share custody or are not their parent or legal guardian.
Know your exemption limits: Use the CBSA duty and taxes estimator to calculate any money owed on goods you’re bringing over the border.
Carrying cannabis: Avoid carrying Cannabis across the border without a permit or exemption authorized by Health Canada. In parts of the U.S., possessing cannabis is a serious criminal offense subject to arrest and prosecution.
Declare your belongings: Prepare your goods and have their receipts readily available while entering Canada. You are encouraged not to travel with firearms, but if you choose to do so, be sure to check the CBSA website for the rules on importing firearms and other restricted and prohibited goods.
Bringing fireworks into Canada?: Check your fireworks and make sure you’re bringing the authorized ones.
Coming by boat?: Review reporting requirements for private boaters before making travel plans. All travellers entering Canada by boat must report to the CBSA without delay.
Declare any foods, plants, or animals: Consult the Automated Import Reference System (AIRS) on the Canadian Food Inspection Agency website before bringing any food, plant and animal products into Canada.
Know what poultry products or byproducts you can import: Currently, conditions and restrictions may apply for some live birds, bird products and byproducts imported from the U.S. Updates are ongoing, so check for the latest information for travellers and be prepared to prove the origin of your poultry product at the border.
Not sure?: Ask a border services officer. The best thing you can do to save time is to be open and honest with the CBSA, according to the agency.
Reporting for this story was paid for through The Afghan Journalists in Residence Project funded by Meta.
Ukraine's troops have been forced to make a tactical retreat from three villages in the embattled east, the country's army chief said Sunday, warning of a worsening battlefield situation as Ukrainian forces wait for much-needed arms from a huge U.S. aid package to reach combat zones.
Ontario is introducing a suite of measures that will crack down on cellphone use and vaping in schools.
One person has been charged with second-degree murder in connection with the death of a man who fell from a balcony following an altercation inside a Toronto apartment building.
Ontario is now home to an invasive and toxic worm species that can grow up to three feet long and can be dangerous to small animals and pets.
Dozens of people raised their arms in the fascist salute and shouted a fascist chant during ceremonies Sunday to honor Italian dictator Benito Mussolini on the 79th anniversary of his execution.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has issued a recall for a specific chocolate brand sold in Ontario and Quebec.
Laurentian University's board of governors approved a budget of just over $201.7 million for the 2024-2025 fiscal year.
A recent report sheds light on Canadians living abroad--estimated at around four million people in 2016—and the public policies that impact them.
Zendaya and castmates Mike Faist and Josh O’Connor have been on a globetrotting press tour to get the word out about Italian director Luca Guadagnino's original film, which opened in 3,477 locations in the U.S. and Canada.
A woman was found dead in her home in Richmond on Friday and her son was arrested at the scene, police say.
A crash on Highway 99 Sunday morning was caused by a driver going the wrong way on Highway 99, according to authorities.
As the Lower Mainland's Filipino community gathered in South Vancouver for Lapu-Lapu Day on Saturday, one of the festival's organizers set its sights on creating a future focal point for such gatherings.
Ontario is introducing a suite of measures that will crack down on cellphone use and vaping in schools.
Brad Marchand became the Bruins' all-time leading playoff goal-scorer and added an assist as Boston suffocated the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-1 on Saturday to take a 3-1 lead in the teams' first-round playoff series.
A medical episode that led to a collision has claimed the life of a 79-year-old man, according to Durham Regional Police.
Calgary police are investigating after a hit-and-run Saturday afternoon in Bridgeland that left a pedestrian hospitalized with serious, life-altering injuries.
An investigation is underway after a pedestrian was struck and dragged by a vehicle early Sunday morning.
It was a long-awaited reunion at the Calgary International Airport Saturday as Ossama Zaqqout hugged his parents, who had just arrived after fleeing the war in Gaza.
The Ottawa Fire Services says two residents have been displaced following a fire that happened in the second floor of a two-storey double home in Vanier.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has issued a recall for a specific chocolate brand sold in Ontario and Quebec.
The City of Ottawa is warning people of a new scam asking residents to make payments by text messages.
Quebec is investing $603 million over the next five years to counter what its French-language minister describes as the decline of the French language in the province.
Quebec singing star and cultural icon Jean-Pierre Ferland died on Saturday at the age of 89.
The number of microdistilleries in Quebec has boomed in the last decade, growing from less than a dozen to about 70.
A man is dead after he reportedly lost control of his motorcycle in Strathcona County Saturday night.
A woman was killed after crashing into a water truck near the Fort McMurray International Airport Saturday morning.
The number of measles cases around the world nearly doubled from 2022 to 2023, researchers say, presenting a challenge to efforts to achieve and maintain elimination status in many countries.
Health Minister Mark Holland says while he is 'deeply appreciative' of the work doctors in Canada do, the federal government has no plans to scrap the proposed capital gains tax changes outlined in the latest budget, despite opposition from the Canadian Medical Association.
A Toronto-based restructuring firm says several bidders have offered to buy all or part of SaltWire Network and The Halifax Herald, the two insolvent companies that operate Atlantic Canada's largest newspaper enterprise.
Halifax’s professional soccer team kicks off its sixth season against Ottawa on Saturday with a sold-out crowd of 6,500 fans on the Wanderers Grounds.
The trial for the man accused of killing four Indigenous women in Winnipeg is set to get underway on April 29.
A Winnipeg scale model builder is using his craft to showcase a large piece of Canadian history in miniature form.
With heavy wind gusts expected along Lake Manitoba and Lake Winnipeg this weekend, the provincial government is warning residents and property owners about potential ice pileups.
The Regina Rebels made history over the weekend — taking home gold for the first time ever at the U18 women's hockey national championships.
Regina's fire service is investigating following a significant house fire in the North Central area.
'Feel through the Deepness to see,' an art installation by artist Rita McKeough, will be calling the Dunlop Art Gallery home for the next two months.
A ransom for a stolen laptop, a parking dispute at a Kitchener apartment building, and a five-cent property tax bill round out the most-read stories of the week.
Raneem, 10, lives with a neurological condition and liver disease and needs Cholbam, a medication, for a longer and healthier life.
Waterloo regional police are investigating after they found a man unconscious in a Kitchener parking lot with serious injuries.
Workers at group homes run by LutherCare Communities in Saskatoon are escalating their strike action.
On Saturday, in a display of cross-cultural solidarity, members of the Indigenous and Palestinian communities gathered in Saskatoon for an event steeped in prayer and dance.
The Saskatoon Police Service (SPS) and Saskatchewan Coroners Service are investigating after a woman’s body was found at a recycling facility Friday morning.
Laurentian University's board of governors approved a budget of just over $201.7 million for the 2024-2025 fiscal year.
Ontario is introducing a suite of measures that will crack down on cellphone use and vaping in schools.
Environment Canada has lifted the thunderstorm watches issued on Saturday for northeastern Ontario – however, has since issued special weather statements warning of freezing rain from Chapleau, Ont. to Sturgeon Lake, Ont. beginning Monday.
Ontario is introducing a suite of measures that will crack down on cellphone use and vaping in schools.
Working smoke alarms and an alert passerby are credited with saving the lives of several people after a fire broke out at a home in the city’s south end early Sunday morning.
While the federal NDP said it has not decided whether it will support the Liberals’ federal budget tabled this week, London Fanshawe New Democrat MP Lindsay Mathyssen said the party needs to see more.
A solemn occasion to mark the lives lost and workers injured on the job took place in Orillia on Sunday.
Police and search and rescue crews in Gravenhurst are trying to locate a man after reports of a possible drowning.
One person was killed in a six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 in Innisfil Friday evening.
Ontario is introducing a suite of measures that will crack down on cellphone use and vaping in schools.
Rain couldn't stop an annual charity 5K run from taking place in Lakeshore this weekend. In fact, running in the rain has practically become a tradition at this point.
A man is facing several charges after allegedly possessing a knife during an altercation and fleeing from police early Sunday morning.
Out of more than 9,000 entries from over 2,000 breweries in 50 countries, a handful of B.C. brews landed on the podium at the World Beer Cup this week.
J.T. Miller had a goal and assist and the Vancouver Canucks edged the Nashville Predators 2-1 to re-take the lead in their first-round playoff series.
The lawyer for a residential school survivor leading a proposed class-action defamation lawsuit against the Catholic Church over residential schools says the court action is a last resort.
Out of more than 9,000 entries from over 2,000 breweries in 50 countries, a handful of B.C. brews landed on the podium at the World Beer Cup this week.
An emaciated dachshund is now recovering thanks to a Good Samaritan who found the pup near a biking trail in Kelowna, according to the BC SPCA.
Search and rescue crews have been called in after a vehicle belonging to a missing senior was located near a rural intersection outside of Kelowna Tuesday.
The Brooks Bandits got down to business Friday, defeating the Okotoks Oilers 8-2.
An Alberta political scientist said the NDP leadership hopefuls remained fairly even following the first of the party’s debates.
It was a busy Wednesday evening for fire crews in Lethbridge County after multiple grass fires were sparked near the Kipp rail yard.
St. Joseph’s General Hospital Elliot Lake says it is moving towards “normalcy” by transitioning to a mask-friendly policy.
Environment Canada has lifted the thunderstorm watches issued on Saturday for northeastern Ontario – however, has since issued special weather statements warning of freezing rain from Chapleau, Ont. to Sturgeon Lake, Ont. beginning Monday.
About 100 delegates from around the province travelled to Timmins, Ont., for its annual general meeting and convention at Cedar Meadows Resort and Spa.
Legendary sportscaster Bob Cole was a Newfoundlander through and through, and his daughter says his connection to the province was 'everything' to him.
Cenovus Energy has been ordered to pay a $2.5-million fine for its role in the largest offshore oil spill ever recorded in Newfoundland and Labrador.
As more Canadians find themselves struggling to afford or find housing, the country's smallest province is the only one that can point to legislation recognizing housing as a human right.
As if a 4-0 Edmonton Oilers lead in Game 1 of their playoff series with the Los Angeles Kings wasn't good enough, what was announced at Rogers Place during the next TV timeout nearly blew the roof off the downtown arena.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
Ontario is introducing a suite of measures that will crack down on cellphone use and vaping in schools.
Trudeau recently appeared on four podcasts as he travels the country talking up the Liberals' latest budget, which he's pitching as a plan to inject more economic fairness into society for those under 40 — a cohort that has kept Trudeau in power since 2015 but is increasingly turning to Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre.
Quebec is investing $603 million over the next five years to counter what its French-language minister describes as the decline of the French language in the province.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has issued a recall for a specific chocolate brand sold in Ontario and Quebec.
The number of measles cases around the world nearly doubled from 2022 to 2023, researchers say, presenting a challenge to efforts to achieve and maintain elimination status in many countries.
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
State-sponsored actors targeted security devices used by governments around the world, according to technology firm Cisco Systems, which said the network devices are coveted intrusion points by spies.
TikTok is in the crosshairs of authorities in the U.S., where a new law threatens a nationwide ban unless its China-based parent ByteDance divests. Here are the places that have partial or total bans on TikTok.
The Hubble Space Telescope has captured a stunning new image of the glowing gas ejected from a dying star, which in this case happens to resemble a 'cosmic dumbbell.'
Morgan Freeman spoke the words, but pretty much everyone who took the stage at the presentation of the AFI Life Achievement Award agreed: "Nicole Kidman. She makes movies better."
Zendaya and castmates Mike Faist and Josh O’Connor have been on a globetrotting press tour to get the word out about Italian director Luca Guadagnino's original film, which opened in 3,477 locations in the U.S. and Canada.
California performers are organizing to be represented by a union now, more than four decades after their Florida counterparts did so.
The rise of remote and hybrid work has made it harder to justify a full office, so more are leaning on co-working spaces that they share with many others for convenience and cost savings. The choice, however, comes at the expense of privacy and control.
The 2024 federal budget announced on April 16 included plans to introduce “halal mortgages” as a way to increase access to home ownership.
The federal and Quebec governments are spending close to $100 million to boost the country's manufacturing capacity for semiconductors, which are vital in technologies ranging from artificial intelligence to quantum computing.
Employees increasingly find that robust workplace volunteer programs meet their desires for in-person connections, professional growth and altruistically inclined employers — career objectives that might be missing in conventional corporate atmospheres.
Take an illustrated look back at the culinary history of Winnipeg.
An idyllic 453-acre private island is up for sale off the west coast of Scotland and it comes with sandy beaches, puffins galore, seven houses, a pub, a helipad and a flock of black-faced sheep.
Mookie Betts went 3 for 5, including a triple and an RBI single, as the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Toronto Blue Jays 4-2 on Saturday.
Canadian football observers thought it could happen, and on Saturday, it did. Towering offensive lineman Giovanni Manu – who was born in Tonga and grew up in Pitt Meadows, B.C. – became the first player from the University of British Columbia ever to be selected in the NFL draft.
William Nylander has joined the Stanley Cup chase.
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
Ford’s electric vehicle unit reported that losses soared in the first quarter to US $1.3 billion, or US$132,000 for each of the 10,000 vehicles it sold in the first three months of the year.
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
The Shopping Trends team is independent of the journalists at CTV News. We may earn a commission when you use our links to shop. Read about us.
