landing experience

Questions: Landing on April 12th

Friends,

I will be landing this week and hence really need this forum’s help. In turn I will post my experience on my return (what worked and what did not) so that it may help others.

Thanks in advance.

Questions:

Q1) Proof of funds to show during landing:
1a) How much is the minimum Canadian $ amount that I need to bring with myself during landing? I will be landing with my spouse and daughter. (I know more is better but I intend to return to US the next day)

1b) If I need to bring in more than US $10,000, will Canadian authorities accept if I have 2 drafts one in my name and another in my wife's name? (this to avoid having a certified check > US $10,000)

Q2) All those who have successfully landed, official accepted their friends/relative’s address for PR card and returned to US; What did you say when asked if you are landing permanently?

Q3) All those who successfully landed, official refused to accept their friends/relative’s address for PR card and returned to US: How long did it take to apply for temporary travel documents and how complicated is this process?
 
Nijil said:
Hi Kali,
May I please know what B4 /B4A forms are ? The Goods to follow , Goods In Possession forms ? What does the customs declaration for the funds look like ?
Is it in this that we enter details of the bankers cheque / cash to be shown as proof of funds ?

I plan to land in May and might as well have them ready like you did.
Thanks in advance
Nijil.
Click to expand...

Nijil,
The B4/B4A forms are basically used for both the goods to follow and goods in possession. B4 is the main form where the vehicles and some goods go while B4A is a continuation of B4 for additional items. Just make sure to check the box as goods to follow if the list is indeed a goods to follow.

For my case I made both the lists in excel and attached it to the B4 list and asked the customs officer to mark it accordingly as goods to follow.Additional details can be researched at:
http://www.settlement.org/sys/faqs_detail.asp?faq_id=4000503

However the funds that your are carrying that have to be declared to the canadian customs are form E677 and is available at
http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/E/pbg/cf/e677/e677-fill-06b.pdf

If you are going Canada from USA then you also have to declare the funds that you are taking OUT and IN to USA using Fincen 105 available at
http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/

Kali
 
sk-1 said:
Friends,

I will be landing this week and hence really need this forum’s help. In turn I will post my experience on my return (what worked and what did not) so that it may help others.

Thanks in advance.

Questions:

Q1) Proof of funds to show during landing:
1a) How much is the minimum Canadian $ amount that I need to bring with myself during landing? I will be landing with my spouse and daughter. (I know more is better but I intend to return to US the next day)

As per the rules since there are 3 of you you need minimum CAN $15,563. Chances are they may ask you to show the proof of funds of if you are lucky then they will just sign the docs. However if the Bankers checks are not certified then they wont require to sign the docs.

1b) If I need to bring in more than US $10,000, will Canadian authorities accept if I have 2 drafts one in my name and another in my wife's name? (this to avoid having a certified check > US $10,000)

The funds can can be brought over in any combination. 1, 2 , 3 different instruments named between you and your wife or child. However you have to fill 1 decleration form totaling the funds both on US and CAN side.


Q2) All those who have successfully landed, official accepted their friends/relative’s address for PR card and returned to US; What did you say when asked if you are landing permanently?

The address was accepted however it all depends on the officer and his/her mood. If you land by car try to cross over when there is less traffic and have a jovial mood and make sure all your documents are well prepared in advance so that they may not get irritated. Regarding the landing details you can reab my previous post on the same page. I convince them that since my wife is on H4 and cannot work in US she will be staying back to join some institute and look for a job.

Q3) All those who successfully landed, official refused to accept their friends/relative’s address for PR card and returned to US: How long did it take to apply for temporary travel documents and how complicated is this process?
Click to expand...
 
sk-1 said:
Friends,

I will be landing this week and hence really need this forum’s help. In turn I will post my experience on my return (what worked and what did not) so that it may help others.

Thanks in advance.

Questions:

Q1) Proof of funds to show during landing:
1a) How much is the minimum Canadian $ amount that I need to bring with myself during landing? I will be landing with my spouse and daughter. (I know more is better but I intend to return to US the next day)

As per the rules since there are 3 of you, you need minimum CAN $15,563. Chances are they may ask you to show the proof of funds of if you are lucky then they will just sign the docs. However if the Bankers checks are not certified then they wont require to sign the docs.

1b) If I need to bring in more than US $10,000, will Canadian authorities accept if I have 2 drafts one in my name and another in my wife's name? (this to avoid having a certified check > US $10,000)

The funds can be brought over in any combination. 1, 2 , 3 different instruments named between you and your wife or child. However you have to fill 1 decleration form totaling the funds both on US and CAN side.


Q2) All those who have successfully landed, official accepted their friends/relative’s address for PR card and returned to US; What did you say when asked if you are landing permanently?

The address was accepted however it all depends on the officer and his/her mood. If you land by car try to cross over when there is less traffic and have a jovial mood and make sure all your documents are well prepared in advance so that they may not get irritated. Regarding the landing details you can read my previous post on the same page. I convince them that since my wife is on H4 and cannot work in US she will be staying back to join some institute and look for a job.

Kali "Hope the info is helpful"

Q3) All those who successfully landed, official refused to accept their friends/relative’s address for PR card and returned to US: How long did it take to apply for temporary travel documents and how complicated is this process?
Click to expand...
 
Thanks

Thank You for your prompt response. I feel much better prepared.

One clarification: I have made 2 checks one in my wife's name and another in my name with individual amounts of both check's less than $10,000 US (The total amount comes to > US $10,000). Do I still need to turn in the finCEN 105 form before leaving US?

Thanks a bunch.
 
Suucessful landing and return back to US on AVR

Reached Rainbow Bridge, Niagra on Sunday evening at around 5pm last week with my wife and my 1 yr old daughter. No questions were asked. Only address was asked to send the PR card. Customs had no issues either. They asked me if I will be bringing in my car later and I said no.

I stayed in the Embessy suites right accross the falls little expensive $200 for the night but it had awesome view of the falls. Very nice Breakfast and Free drinks in the evening.

Morning I went to apply for SIN # alone with all the papers but the of rep there told me that my wife and daughter has to be present in the office. So I went and got them and completed the formalities.

While returning ... at the US border at Rainbow Bridge (this was the place I was worried abt the most) ... I gave everyone's passport ... they told me that I haven't been outside US for 2.5 yrs and I said yes and told him that my wife recently went to India and got her H4 visa stamped. and thats pretty much it.
 
Have you resolved the problem?

mpunjabi said:
I also thought it would not be a big deal. I was try to land via Peace Bridge. I am not sure why the officer would have such a problem but from his talks it looked like they did not like people coming as PR just to get H stamp. So I guess he wanted more proof that I really plan to move to canada.

if anyone had similar experiences or know someone with similar situation please help out.

Thanks.
Click to expand...

I think you should be ok now. Once your appointment for H Stamping no longer exsits, you are ok to go. Basically, individual officer has their own understand on how to handle the case.
 
Canada landing with Medical Surveillance conditions attached,Please help

Hi experts and gurus,

Please help!!! Landing soon, no previous post cover my question. Thanks in advance.


I got my Canada landing doc and need to do landing before the end of Apr, 2006.

My landing has Medical Surveillance conditions attached. Inactive TB. and I have to report to medical authorities within 30 days after landing.

I saw saw your post Apr 2005 on immigrationportal.com that your wife has the same situation. Could you please help with the following questions?

1. I plan to land and come back to USA in a couple days, so I won't be able to wait in Canada until the medical doc to arrive for the medical check. I called the medical center in Canada, they mentioned that they will send the medical check appointment to the address I'll give for my PR card at the POE Canada. I plan to give my friend's address and she will forward me the medical appointment mail. I'll go to Canada for the medical check on a reentry of canada.

Is that possible? What did your wife do when you do landing last year?

2. when reenetering Canada, what is the necessary document I need provide?

Appreciate your help in advance. Thanks.

Canland
 
Summary: Landed on April 15th at Sarnia, Ontario in a rental car with no issues and returned to US on April 16th via same border crossing again with no issues. This border crossing was not busy and both the US and Canadian personnel were friendly and courteous.

At the initial Canadian border booth:

Q) Why coming to Canada today?
A) Landing
Q) Are you going to reside permanently in Canada?
A) Yes, landing
Q) Asked if we were carrying any items with us today, the approx. Canadian $ value of these items.
Q) Asked if we will have goods to follow?
Q) Asked if brining car in the future?
Q) Asked the $ value of funds on hand today?

The officer summarized the answers to the above questions and wrote them on a yellow sip of paper, handed it to me and directed me to the immigration and customs building.

At the immigration counter:

Handed our passports and landing documents. The immigration officer asked no questions but was friendly (Did not ask if we were returning to US). Took friends address to mail the PR cards. Total time spent at immigration counter was about 15 minutes. Informed us that it will take 4-6 weeks for PR cards to arrive and welcomed us to Canada. He then directed us to the Customs counter across the hall.

At the customs counter:

Handed over filled out the B4 and B4A forms in duplicate. I had picked this up from an earlier posting on this forum by “Kalibp”. This was very helpful. Even the custom’s official was very appreciative of the preparations. Total time at customs took about 20 minutes primarily because a new person was doing the paperwork and had to ask her supervisor on occasions.

Crossing back to US:

Again the border crossing was empty and handed the US border officer our passports.

Q) Where are you coming from?
A) Niagara falls.

Checked the passports and handed it back to us. Total time about 2 minutes.

Again, thanks to everyone for posting their experience on this forum. It helped me be better prepared and aware of the landing procedure.
 
Successful landing and return using Auto Revalidation.

First of all, thanks to everyone out here, who reply to queries and post experiences. It’s really been a great help. :)

Canada Immigration & Customs:
I reached Buffalo Saturday evening and stayed there for the night. Landed in Canada thru’ the Peace Bridge on Sunday morning. Reached the immigration office at around 9. My spouse and I were the only ones out there. The immigration took no more than 10 minutes. I was just asked to show the proof of funds. I had taken two Cashiers Checks combined for over 10000 USD. I had one in my name and the other in my spouse’s.
They asked me for an address in Canada…I gave them a piece of paper on which I had it and the phone number of the person/address in Canada. They recorded both (the address as well as the phone number).
Customs took around 40 minutes. I had two copies of “Goods to follow list” and pictures of the jewelry listed (two sets). They again asked to see my proof of funds, goods of list to follow and the pictures. They kept one set and stamped and gave me the other set, along with some other documentation. The officer asked me when I was going to get the stuff, and I said around 4 months and that’s when I was going to land for good. The process took a while as the officer missed out some form and had to redo some work. Overall it was a very easy process.

Once done with that landing, I visited a couple of places and came to Niagara in the evening.

US Return:
The part which I dreaded the most was probably the best part of the trip. It couldn’t have been easier. I have a valid H1 but no stamp on my passport. I have an expired F1 visa stamp.

I reached the Rainbow Bridge on Monday morning for my return to the US. There were a few vehicles, but were moving pretty quickly. My wait in the line was around 5-7 minutes. The following is an approximate conversation I had:

Officer: Country of Birth?
Me: India
Officer: Do you live in the US?
Me: Yes
I handed my passport. I had attached my valid I94 with a valid I797 on the page where the Canadian authorities had stamped my date of arrival. (This way the US guys wouldn’t have to look around for my date of entry into Canada)
Officer: Have you been for <some sort> of special registration?
Me: I haven’t been out of the US for a long time
Officer: How long?
Me: 5 years
Officer spoke to the parking officer that we were pulling up.
Me: I landed in Canada for my PR and I am carrying more then 10000 USD as proof of funds.
The officer looked at the cashier’s checks and said I need not declare it since I had not singed them.

I was directed to park my car. Did so and went into the building on the second floor. I was not told this very clearly so spent a few minutes figuring that out.

In the immigration office there were around five people. The sign says to wait to be called. In less than 10 minutes a very friendly, portly officer called us and handed us the passports along with the I797 and I94. He said that we were set and he had stamped the date of entry on our passports. He asked for a white slip which I had not received … he gave me a new one and asked me to give it to the parking officer. Did so and was out of the there.

I had carried a lot of documents with me, just in case, but nothing was needed.

Driving your own car v/s rented car
I drove my own car… the custom officer in Canada suggested I register it now since I was already driving it, that would have cost me a couple of hundred CDN $. I said I did not want to do it as I did not have enough cash. The officer agreed to it.

Cashiers Check
Since I never signed my cashiers check, I did not have to declare them in the US, and that probably saved me some time for paperwork.

Hope this helps, thanks and good luck to everyone!
 
Hello,

Did any of you people who used the AVR system have "Cancelled Without Prejudice" stamped on your expired visas by any chance? Mine is stamped like that and not sure if that will pose any problems if I wanted to use AVR.

Thanks,


Stoned!
 
Do any of you guys know, if you need form B4/B4A even if you are not importing anything at the time of landing or will just a summary of goods to follow on excel would do ?
 
Nothing will happen - it just means that the visa is cancelled because of reasons other than any prejudice/your fault - so u r safe!

StonedAnt said:
Hello,

Did any of you people who used the AVR system have "Cancelled Without Prejudice" stamped on your expired visas by any chance? Mine is stamped like that and not sure if that will pose any problems if I wanted to use AVR.

Thanks,
Click to expand...
 
kothari_rupesh said:
Do any of you guys know, if you need form B4/B4A even if you are not importing anything at the time of landing or will just a summary of goods to follow on excel would do ?
Click to expand...

Rupesh,

I gave mine which I had created in Word, and that was good enough. I also had the other one (B4) ready just in case.
 
StonedAnt said:
Hello,

Did any of you people who used the AVR system have "Cancelled Without Prejudice" stamped on your expired visas by any chance? Mine is stamped like that and not sure if that will pose any problems if I wanted to use AVR.

Thanks,

Stoned!
Click to expand...

Just curious, when you got that cancelled, wasn't it replaced by something else?
 
cornholio said:
Just curious, when you got that cancelled, wasn't it replaced by something else?
Click to expand...

I had tried to renew my visa few years back from St Louis when they announced that they would stop the revalidation within the US. Unfortunately, they did not revalidate mine as my previous visa stamp had expired for more than a year. So they sent my passport back and instructed to get the visa from a consular post abroad and stamped the expired visa with "Cancelled Without Prejudice". I am just concerned if I shall be denied entry using AVR due to that.


Stoned!
 
Police clearance question

Folks

I need your help. I read on another thread that you can get your PCC from india in one day from regional passport office. Can you please tell me what addresses should you enter in the Miscellaneous form at the local passport office. Should you include your US address and Indian address in "temporary adress" and "Permenant address" respectively? Or your US address for both temp and permenant address?

Please let me know as I am trying to get my PCC from Indian Regional passport office too for the sake of getting it quickely.

Thanks,
logiclife.
 
StonedAnt said:
I had tried to renew my visa few years back from St Louis when they announced that they would stop the revalidation within the US. Unfortunately, they did not revalidate mine as my previous visa stamp had expired for more than a year. So they sent my passport back and instructed to get the visa from a consular post abroad and stamped the expired visa with "Cancelled Without Prejudice". I am just concerned if I shall be denied entry using AVR due to that.

Stoned!
Click to expand...

Stoned,

Can you please post your experience of Auto Revalidation when u've used it. I have a couple of Pakistani friends who might want to use it, sometime in the near future.

Thanks and good luck.
 
Oh I shall definitely post my experience. Right now I am trying to schedule an appointment in a US Consulate in Canada just in case, even though I'm having a bit of trouble finding an appointment as everything seems to be booked for the next 10 weeks everywhere according to nvars.com. I did speak to an attorney regarding this, and the answer I got back was that he did not see me facing any problems. He even suggested for me to get my passport stamped as he said the Visa Office will consider the fact that I have been living in the US for so long (10+ years) and maintained a legal status. Also working for a stable company for a long period helps. I am still a bit paranoid and nauseous about this whole situation.


Stoned!
 
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