Flag poling... your experiences?
 

we have to flag pole in a few weeks to renew our TWP, SOWP and kids study permits (which in itself sucks as we are two months in to waiting for them to accept our medicals and on PNP should have heard by now)
i have a couple of questions and i wondered if it was worth writing a wiki or something about it?

ive only entered the country by plane, whats the protocol for road trips? do you need a visa/ETSY for USA ( we are uk citizens)

are there any restrictions on what you can take/bring back? is it worth buying anything there to bring back? we have a 12hr drive back to Prince george after so nothing that will spoil.

travelling with three kids, what questions are they likely to ask?

We have a letter of support from PNP, we have details of our PR case file number which is still in processing, and we have a letter from my hubbys work confirming he works there and is a full time permanent member of staff. we also have the forms and fees, do we need anything else?

thinking of crossing one of the vancouver routes, anyone recommend any of them for a saturday? we are driving down friday, and staying over friday and sat night so can do any time. but with kids probs not middle of the night lol.

any idea how long it takes? my last memory of immigration at van airport was 15 deep and 6hr waits *shudder* dont fancy that after a 12hr road trip!

Re: Flag poling... your experiences?
 

You can either apply for I94 waivers at $6 per person if you want to go into the USA and look around. Less than 24 hour stay no personal exemptions but I doubt they would collect on $50 of groceries.
You can also tell USCBP that you wish to flagpole and turn straight back around. They will give you an Administrative Refusal of Entry into the USA. This will not affect further trips to the USA as its no big deal.
On reaching the Canadian side you ask to speak to Immigration. Take all of your paperwork with you and they will issue all relevant documents. Work permits are $150 per permit and the visitor records are FREE.
THATS IT.
As for the BC crossings they get busy in the afternoons early evening. For Immigration purposes I would pick the Peace Arch or Pac Highway crossing.
As for time to clear it could be 30 mins to a couple of hours.

Re: Flag poling... your experiences?
 

Have you thought about applying for an extension by post?

You'll get implied status to be able to carry on working (current processing time is 75 days), and in the meantime, if your PR comes through, you may be able to cancel the application (if it's not cancelled automatically) and get a refund if your new work permits haven't been issued yet.

Re: Flag poling... your experiences?
 

For Peace Arch or Pacific Hwy crossings try to avoid Saturday mornings going south and later afternoon (tea time) coming north. If you are not planning to enter the US, just flagpole, then Friday evening or Saturday lunchtime will likely be best. Both are 24/7.

Have you thought about spending Friday and Saturday nights in a hotel in the US? You could then go shopping on Saturday and then drive north on Sunday morning when things are likely to be quiet.

Re: Flag poling... your experiences?
 

Ha, ha, ha, ha. That's funny.

Not :frown:

I did exactly that, and aside from the inconvenience of the 4hrs US border control decided the paperwork would take to issue an administrative refusal, I had 4 subsequent years of having to visit secondary inspection on every trip I made to the states. It made flight scheduling a PITA, and I was told very clearly on each occasion it was due to the refusal of entry record. I had to go through an appeals process with Homeland Security to clear the issue up.

Re: Flag poling... your experiences?
 

While dealing with my paperwork at the Canadian side, the nice CBSA lady just told me to leave the car where I'd parked it and to take a walk onto the bridge (between St. Stephen and Calais).

She watched me walk onto the bridge, I did a 180, she witnessed me 'entering Canada' and that was that...no dealings with the US side at all.

That was a quite a few years ago, though.

Re: Flag poling... your experiences?
 

ok, so pay for the I94 then :thumbsup:

i applied for my last renewal by post and it took 3 months, and during that time i was (and am) still unable to get my full photocard licence, my paper licence is worthless for anything other than driving as it doesnt have my photos on it and more importantly while on implied status i had an absolute bitch of a time getting my carecard extended - they agreed eventually but i was left with weeks wondering if i still had the coverage we need as a family of 5 with no additional insurance ( hubbys union pays 90% so additional insurance is un-ness)
so we have weighed the pros and cons of postal and ruled it out completely.

we might go into USA to look around, if we have all day, is there anywhere just over the boarder worth a look? dont fancy a road trip after the 12h to get to van. any suggestions?

Re: Flag poling... your experiences?
 

Three destinations without driving too far:

Birch Bay. The beach is good if its a nice day and good for paddling and kids letting off steam.

Bellingham. A big, typical, North American shopping mall. Full of Canadians. The older part of Bellingham (Fairhaven) is a pleasant spot for a meal/coffee/beer and a wander.

Mount Baker National Forest. A little bit more driving but if the snow has melted sufficiently for you to drive to the top then it is sectacular. But check in advance. http://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/mbs/ho...telprdb5150431

Re: Flag poling... your experiences?
 

It would be interesting to see if any others have experienced your situation when asking for an Administrative refusal. I know many who have done it and never had problems going into the US.

Re: Flag poling... your experiences?
 

dont think ill risk it. we can get the i94 at the boarder right?

can go for a wee day trip - ive never been to the states :D

Re: Flag poling... your experiences?
 

Most Brits and citizens of countries that are part of the Visa Waiver Programme usually pay for the I94 waiver and do a bit of shopping, lunch or whatever.
Those who require a visa to enter the USA may ask for the refusal as they see it as a hassle to get a visa.
Maybe the odd Scottish person who doesnt want to pay the 6 bucks either asks for the refusal.