Canadians who want a Nexus card will have to travel to U.S. to get it
A Nexus card is supposed to help put low-risk Canadians on the fast track when crossing the U.S. border, but at least 330,000 Canadians aren’t sure when their applications will be processed.
"It's been a major disappointment, because it's taking so long," said Toronto resident Margaret Cassidy, who applied for a Nexus card in 2019.
- Download our app to get local alerts to your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
Raichelle Hum, also of Toronto, applied for a Nexus card more than two years ago and has no idea when she can get the necessary in-person interview to finish the process.
"I travel periodically to the U.S. for work and my husband already has a Nexus card so for us it would make travelling a lot easier,” Hum said.
Nexus is a Canada-U.S. program designed to help speed up cross-border travel for low-risk Canadians by land, air and sea.
Nexus enrolment centres in Canada have been closed since March of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and health restrictions.
A Canada Border Services Agency officer speaks with a traveller at the Nexus office at the airport in Ottawa, Tuesday May 8, 2012. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
However, in the U.S., enrolment centres opened in April of this year, meaning if Canadians want to finish their Nexus application they have to travel to the U.S. to do it.
READ MORE: This is what Toronto Pearson wants you to know as Canada's new travel rules come into effect
In a statement to CTV News Toronto, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said, “At this time, enrolment centres in Canada will remain closed.”
The Canada Border Services Agency told CTV News, “Canadian citizens and permanent residents can book their enrollment interviews at any U.S. Nexus enrolment centres.”
Until further notice, if you want to finish your application for a Nexus card you’ll have to travel to a U.S. border city for the interview process.
That’s what Cassidy plans to do as she finally has an interview set up in mid-July in Niagara Falls, New York to finish her application.
"There have been so many delays along the way and everybody was in the dark. I still don't know why the Canadian side is not open,” Cassidy said.
Meanwhile, Hum said she still has no idea when she may be able to get her Nexus application approved.
“I'm unsure when I’ll be able to get an interview. It's very challenging to find one," she said.
It's not clear why Nexus offices in Canada remain closed when they've been open in the U.S. since April.
Canadians who are unable to use the speedier Nexus lines are also adding to the backlogs and security delays at border crossings and airports.
Officials say they're in discussions with the U.S. as to when enrolment centres may re-open in Canada, but anyone applying to get a Nexus card should expect major delays.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.