Nexus enrolment centre opening at YVR as program ramps back up

Nexus application centre reopens YVR's enrolment centre is open but a new two-part process for applicants is in place due to a dispute between Canada and the U.S. over guns.

Frequent travellers between Canada and the U.S. will be able to apply for or renew their Nexus memberships at Vancouver International Airport starting Monday.

The process will, however, look different than it did prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic Canadian border agents will now interview Nexus applicants separately from U.S. agents.

Conditionally pre-approved and renewing members will be able to schedule the Canadian portion of the interview at YVR by booking online.

The U.S. portion of the interview can also be done at YVR, but an appointment is not required. Instead, those interviews can be done at US Customs and Border Patrol preclearance locations before boarding a departing flight.

"By hosting the Nexus enrolment centre, we are pleased to help facilitate trusted travellers obtain their Nexus cards, which in turn speeds up border crossings and supports the billions of dollars in economic activity generated in both countries," a statement from YVR says.

Registration for the program has been on hold in Canada for nearly a year even after Nexus enrolment centres unlocked their doors in the United States. The delay was due, in part, to a clash over U.S. agents' right to carry guns on Canadian soil.

The standoff led to a massive backlog in applications for the program, particularly as international travel ramped back up when pandemic-related restrictions were lifted. At its peak, the backlog impacted more than 340,000 applicants in Canada.

With files from The Canadian Press