25 JUN 2019: A new agreement between Canada and the United States extends preclearance for travellers crossing by land, rail and sea. Early stages of planning are underway for pre-clearances for train passengers travelling from Montreal into New York and on the Rocky Mountaineer railway in British Columbia, which extends into Washington State.  The two countries have also agreed to add US preclearance operations at Billy Bishop airport in Toronto and Jean Lesage airport in Quebec City.

The agreement  will soon allow travellers and cargo to preclear customs before they leave, allowing an easier movement of people and goods crossing the border.

Preclearance operations will be expanded to additional airports, and will, for the first time, allow pre-clearances of cargo travelling across the border.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the US President, announced that they intend to implement the new preclearance agreement this summer as part of a deal that has been in the works for years.

“Delays at the border can easily disrupt operations for Canadian and American business owners, so we want to remove some of these obstacles to expand trade while keeping our people safe,” Trudeau told reporters.

“(The preclearance agreement) is going to ensure our border remains safe as we move forward with greater back-and-forth of our goods and our people. That is something that is fundamental and essential to Canadians.”

Trudeau didn’t say when travellers would see the new measures in place.

The agreement was first announced in 2015 but required a number of regulatory changes in both countries before it could be enacted. Canada passed its legislation in 2017.

While air travellers flying from several Canadian airports have long been able to clear US customs before going to the United States, flyers going from the United States to Canada have not. Canada could have implemented a similar model to the one used by the US but has chosen not to.

Information obtained through access-to-information law shows Canada has taken a cautious approach, weighing a number of factors including economic benefits and competitiveness, traffic flows, space constraints at airports, national-security considerations and financial implications.

Decisions on how and where the newly expanded preclearance measures will be rolled out will be based on a “careful assessment of the benefits and costs of preclearance at specific locations for passengers and cargo,” said Scott Bardsley, a spokesman for Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale.

Sites chosen for preclearance are voluntary and market-driven, he added.

As for when cargo preclearance will get underway, Bardsley said Canada would proceed gradually, using pilot projects. One has already been launched at the border checkpoint between Lacolle, Que., and Rouses Point, N.Y.