Canadian customs agents may soon be stationed at U.S. border crossings on the continental United States for the first time in history, with American agents potentially working at Canadian border crossings, CBC News has learned.
“This is a fundamental change,” said Mark Webber, president of the union representing Canadian border workers. “You’re working in another country…that changes things completely.”
If approved, the federal government’s proposed regulations would allow the program to be expanded to other border crossings across the country.
The initiative will begin with a two-year pilot project at a small border crossing in Covey Hill/Cannon Corners on the Quebec-New York border. The pilot project, which could take place as early as June, would see Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officers move alongside U.S. officials to the U.S. border station, about 200 meters from the Canada Border Station. .
Currently, the Covey Hill border crossing is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET, with traffic ranging from about 12 vehicles a day to about 41 vehicles a day during the peak summer season.
In the pilot, the CBSA will provide most of its usual services at pre-entry checkpoints in the U.S., but asylum seekers will need to be referred to another border crossing on mainland Canada.
Dennis Binet, vice president of traveler services for the CBSA, said the move has been in the works for years, but negotiations with the U.S. side took time.
“This is the right time,” Binet told CBC News. “As we invest in infrastructure along the Canada-U.S. border, there will likely be opportunities for co-location at some of our locations in both Canada and the U.S. in the future.” [and] America”
The proposal also raises serious questions about immigration lawyers and the union representing CBSA employees.
Dennis Vignette, vice president of traveler services for the CBSA, explains the process travelers would encounter at the proposed Canadian pre-entry screening post in the United States.
Robert Israel Blanchey, a member of the Canadian Bar Association’s Immigration Law Section, said his group is investigating whether the Canadian Charter of Rights applies to pre-entry screening stations on mainland U.S. soil and what this move means for asylum seekers. He said he wanted to know what that meant.
“This is the first time in the history of this country that we are considering having CBSA personnel, who are border patrol agents, in a foreign country,” Blanchey said. “While it may not seem like a bad idea at first glance, it has significant implications for many foreign nationals seeking to gain entry to Canada.”
Weber said his union has not yet been consulted on the proposal and has many concerns about the health, safety and legal protections of CBSA employees assigned to posts within the United States.
“If we can support interdiction efforts, if we can keep weapons, drugs and synthetic opioids out of Canada, that could be a win-win for Canadians,” he said.
“Members, I have a question about health and safety. Does Part 2 of the Canada Labor Code apply? What are the labor standards when I am abroad?
“We don’t know what our authorities will do. Will we have the right to seize, detain, arrest? We don’t know.”
The proposed regulations that would enable the move were quietly published in the Canada Gazette on Dec. 16, the day after Parliament sat for Christmas recess. The public consultation on the proposals will end on January 15, two weeks before parliament reconvenes.
The notice of a month-long consultation period during the Christmas holidays appears to have surprised some groups. Blanchey said the Canadian Bar Association does not have enough time to consider the proposal and is seeking an extension.
The government can adopt final regulations after the consultation period ends. The CBSA said the regulation is a prerequisite for proceeding with discussions with the United States to launch a pilot project.
Pre-clearance between Canada and the United States first began in 1952, when American personnel began pre-clearing at Canadian airports. The system allows passengers to be screened by U.S. authorities at these airports while still in Canada, eliminating the need to queue and report to customs upon arrival in the United States.
Pre-clearance is currently available at eight Canadian airports and the ferry terminal in Prince Rupert, British Columbia. There are no Canadian authorities that provide pre-clearance clearance for passengers traveling to Canada in the continental United States. However, police officers from both countries work in the same building at two small border crossings located on the Canada-US border.
March 2015, 4 years after the announcement cross-border agreements Regarding North American border security, Canada and the United States have reached an agreement to expand advance clearance of travelers and goods beyond airports to land, rail, and sea border crossings. In 2017, Parliament adopted Bill C-23, and the agreement entered into force in 2019.
In its consultation notice, the CBSA says the proposed changes have a number of benefits.
“Establishing a Canadian pre-clearance operation within the United States will facilitate the flow of lawful travelers and goods across the border to prevent the entry of unauthorized persons and goods, and will support Canadians and the Canadian economy. “Prohibiting entry into Canada will support the government’s and industry’s goals of increasing safety and security,” the agency wrote. “Prior approval is also considered a cost-effective option for replacing aging infrastructure at small and remote ports of entry.”
Shared border crossings are subject to U.S. criminal law
The CBSA operates 80 small and remote ports of entry along the Canadian border, “many of which are in various states of disrepair,” he said.
Binet said pre-clearance posts located in the United States are subject to U.S. criminal law, but Canadian Immigration and Customs regulations also apply.
“So if you were wanted on a warrant in the United States, we would not arrest you, we would detain you and transfer you to U.S. authorities,” Binet said. “It’s in the continental United States, so that’s the law that applies.
“However, if we are looking to bring certain items into Canada that are subject to seizure or payment of taxes, we intend to enforce that through the regulatory side of our operations.”
Binet said that just as U.S. border agents working at Canadian airports are trained in Canadian law, CBSA officers working in the U.S. will also be trained in U.S. law.
Binet said the CBSA is still considering what happens when an undocumented refugee shows up at a pre-entry checkpoint in the continental United States and is turned back and told to go to a border crossing in Canada. .
Blanchey said the proposed system could put asylum seekers at risk and that the CBSA should follow Canadian law to process asylum seekers who inform U.S. pre-screening officials that they want asylum. Ta.
“They made this look very neat and easy and compartmentalized,” he said. “But the reality is that we cannot and cannot stop foreign nationals, whether they are returning permanent residents or not, from opening their mouths and saying whatever they want to say in order to come to Canada.” [or] Work permit holders or…refugee applicants. ”
Weber questioned how the CBSA could staff pre-checkpoints when existing border crossings are already understaffed.
Binet said the current plan is to conduct pre-clearance of travelers and commercial goods at land borders before they arrive in Canada. Further steps could be taken at some point in the future, such as establishing Canadian pre-clearance at U.S. airports.
U.S. officials have not yet responded to an interview request from CBC News.
Here are the details of the plan and a link to comment on it. here.
