Border closest to Ottawa, Ontario

M

mairk

Registered Users (C)
Hi

Wanted to know which is the border closest to Ottawa, where I can apply for a TN status. This would be my first time. I want to be in and out with minimum hassle. Also if anyone has ever applied for TN status at a border close to Ottawa what their experience was like. Is it correct that you cannot apply for TN during weekends. Are immigration officers dealing with TN visas available 24 hours or are they available 9:00 to 5:00 only. Please advise...Thanks.
 
Ogdensburg, New York is about 40-50 min from Ottawa. If you Google you should be able to locate the phone number of to POE and ask then what is preferable for a TN.

You should use the crossing (POE/PFI) that is on your way to your job site. If you intend on making a trip just to get your TN sometimes they will refuse you.

Truth be told most (if not all) POE/PFI can issue TN at all hour of the day or night. It’s a question of finding someone who will do it. Unless the officer is familiar with TN’s they will need to open the book and/or call and find out the procedure. Also if they decide to call the US employer to verify your job offer then you’ll need to wait for business hours.
 
Thank you Dbel for your reply. I have seen other posts on this forum where applicants seem to have gone to the border just to get TN status and then take a U-turn and come back to Canada. Any others out there who did exactly this and didn't have problem...Thanks.
 
That why I wrote “sometimes”. You should only be granted a TN if you are intending of reporting to work after your entry. If you’re entering without intent of going to work then you are ineligible. Again it will depend from officer to officer and where you are crossing. Sometimes they will do it, sometimes they won’t.

Often they don’t ask when you will be reporting to work. Also you should realize that when you request a TN at the border you are effectively telling them you are going to work. If you request a TN without any intent of working then you are committing immigration fraud.

It not often mentioned since CBP doesn’t track your exits nor can they easily verify which day you reported to work. Thus it would be very difficult for USCIS to prove you committed fraud. And I think that USCIS would have nothing to gain by “cracking” down on TN’s issued in advance. However a simple negative note in the USCIS database might make your life complicated.

Why do people want a TN in advance anyway?
 
DBEL said:
Why do people want a TN in advance anyway?
Click to expand...
To be sure they qualify prior to quitting thier current job, packing everything into a UHaul only to find out that your TN letter is not complete, or you don't mee the Education/Experience requirements.
 
curiousGeorge said:
To be sure they qualify prior to quitting thier current job, packing everything into a UHaul only to find out that your TN letter is not complete, or you don't mee the Education/Experience requirements.
Click to expand...

- Very TRUE, "curiousGeorge." I did the same thing - in fact I told the immigration officer that I will be making a U turn back into Canada to pack my stuff. The officer said "okay" and I was back in Canada with my TN within 30 minutes.
 
Thank you everyone. I agree with DBEL that there is no point in taking unnecessary risks and ending up with a negative remark on the file.
 
bigboy00 said:


- Very TRUE, "curiousGeorge." I did the same thing - in fact I told the immigration officer that I will be making a U turn back into Canada to pack my stuff. The officer said "okay" and I was back in Canada with my TN within 30 minutes.
Click to expand...

I did the same thing in Champlain, NY, and the officer even told me where I can make the U-turn.
 
Ottawa airport?

If Ottawa airport is like Toronto, you can do your TN at the airport, without flying. But phone first to make sure, it may be different at Ottawa, and it has been years since I went to the Toronto airport and received my TN, (without flying).
You have to be escorted past security onto "US soil" at the airport, US immigration does the paperwork, and then you walk back to "Canada".
Again, phone first, do not drive to the airport to find out in this post 9-11 world that this practise has been cancelled.
 
I've renewed my TN visa two or three times at the Ogdensburg border crossing while I was visiting my family in Ottawa for the holidays. I would drive down, get the visa, and return to Ottawa. I never had a problem.
 
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