Government Relations Report Ron Steeves First Vice-President I would like to startmy report by extending my thoughts and prayers to all of those who have been impacted by Hurricane Fiona and Hurricane Ian. The association has prepared a hurricane checklist that contains emergency contact information and guidance for dealing with the aftermath of these natural disasters; this checklist can be accessed on our website: www.snowbirds. org/publications/csa-hurricane-checklist. Since my last report, there have been significant developments to Canada’s border measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Effective October 1, 2022, all travellers arriving in Canada are no longer required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or to meet COVID-19 testing, quarantine or isolation requirements. In addition, effective October 1, 2022, all travellers are no longer required to submit their public health information through ArriveCAN. Travellers may still use the Advance CBSA Declaration feature within ArriveCAN, which lets you make a customs and immigration declaration up to 72 hours in advance of flying into Canada. The Advance CBSA Declaration feature is currently available to international air travellers who enter Canada at: • Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ) Terminals 1 and 3 • Vancouver International Airport (YVR) • Montreal-Trudeau International Airport (YUL) • Winnipeg Richardson International Airport (YWG) • Halifax Stanfield International Airport (YHZ). In the coming months, the optional feature will also become available to travellers arriving at the Calgary, Edmonton, Billy Bishop Toronto City, Ottawa and Québec City international airports. Please note that, at this time, travellers cannot use the Advance CBSA Declaration with NEXUS kiosks. Transport Canada has also removed existing travel requirements. As of October 1, 2022, travellers are no longer required to: • undergo health checks for travel by air and rail; or • wear masks on planes or trains. Although the masking requirement has been lifted, the federal government still strongly recommends that all travellers wear high-quality and well-fitted masks during their journeys. Cruise measures have also been lifted, and travellers are no longer required to have pre-boarding tests, be vaccinated or use ArriveCAN. Despite all of the changes which have been made on the Canadian side of the border, at this time, no changes have been made to the U.S. government’s requirement for all visitors 18 years of age and older to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Travellers are considered fully vaccinated two weeks (14 days) after their second dose of an accepted two-dose series. More detailed information about this requirement, including exemptions, can be obtained at: www. cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/ proof-of-vaccination.html. Due to the fluid nature of the pandemic, these cross-border measures can be altered at any time. The CSA will continue to provide members with timely updates through our email advisories. At the end of August, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced the expansion of their Mobile Passport Control program (MPC) to include Toronto’s Pearson International Airport, Montreal-Trudeau International Airport, and Vancouver International Airport. The MPC mobile app, available to U.S. citizens and Canadian B1/B2 visitors (which includes snowbirds), allows travellers to submit their passport and travel information using a mobile device and will enable them to store their information so that it will be readily available for future international travel. This results in less congestion and more efficient processing. The CBP MPC app can be downloaded for free from the Google Play Store or Apple App Store. After downloading the app, users will be prompted to create a profile with their passport information, name, gender, date of birth and country of citizenship. Upon landing in the United States or arriving at an eligible Preclearance location, travellers will select their airport or seaport and terminal, take a self-photo, and answer a series of CBP inspection-related questions. Once the traveller submits his or her transaction through the app, the traveller will receive an electronic receipt with an encrypted Quick Response (QR) code. Travellers will then bring their physical passport and mobile device with their digital QR-coded receipt to a CBP officer to finalize their inspection for entry into the United States. The MPC programwas originally launched in August 2014 and has been used by more than 4.3million travellers. Formore information onMPC, including user eligibility, visit the CBP MPC website here, www.cbp.gov/ travel/us-citizens/mobile-passport-control. The 2022U.S. midtermelections were held on Tuesday, November 8, 2022. The Democratic Party has maintained control of the U.S. Senate and the Republicans have regained control of the House of Representatives. Regardless of the composition of Congress, the CSA remains committed to passage of our Canadian Retiree Visa, a legislative proposal which would extend the length of time which retired Canadians can spend in the United States to eight months annually. CSA officials will be working on having this legislation reintroduced at the start of the new Congressional session in January 2023. Judy and I wish you a safe and happy winter. CSANews | WINTER 2022 | 11
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