Canada moves closer to expanding pre-clearance with U.S.

Canada and the United States have piloted pre-clearance of passengers at designated airports, and newly approved Canadian legislation promises to expand this activity to other transport modes and cargo.     While Canada and the United States have their occasional trade disputes and stark differences during the current renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), both countries remain committed to improving the flow of passengers and cargo across their shared border.
   Canadian government legislation (Bill C-23), which received royal assent Tuesday night, promises implementation of an agreement on land, rail, marine and air transport to expand passenger pre-clearance, as well as add cargo to the mix, at the Canadian and U.S. border.
   Once enabling regulations are in place, the Canadian government said both countries will be able to ratify the agreement and start expanding pre-clearance operations to other modes of transportation – land, rail and marine – and add new airports. The full-on regulations for the air mode are planned to be in place by the end of 2018.
   “The government of Canada is committed to making the Canada–United States border more efficient and secure,” said Ralph Goodale, Canada’s minister of public safety and emergency preparedness, in a statement Wednesday. “Today we are one step closer to expanding pre-clearance – making travel faster for Canadians and bolstering trade, while also protecting our rights.”
   At their meeting in February 2017, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and President Donald Trump committed to accelerating the expansion of passenger pre-clearance operations to additional cities and establishing pre-clearance operations for cargo.
   “The mutual respect of both countries’ laws and sovereignty is a fundamental principle of the agreement on land, rail, marine and air transport pre-clearance. All U.S. pre-clearance activities in Canada will have to be carried out in a manner consistent with Canadian law, including the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Canadian Bill of Rights, and the Canadian Human Rights Act,” the Canadian government said, which received public concern over the U.S. government’s handling of Canadian citizens at the border.
   A new Canada-U.S. pre-clearance agreement will also allow for reimbursement of cost recovery of new pre-clearance operations, which are expected to be covered by the respective facility operator.
   Nearly $2.5 billion in two-way trade passes between Canada and the United States each day, in addition to more than 400,000 travelers.