devilabit

I tried to land today at Cornwall ON but things didnt work out...

Long story short, I got my PR a few months ago but in the meantime decided to move back home and leave Canada. However before leaving I wanted to officially land so that I have the PR card in case I want to come back in the next few years. I live in Montreal and wanted to land in Ontario because I dont have a CSQ and the original plan was to move to Vancouver.

I wanted to avoid getting refused entry to the US so I put on my hiking gear and had a story of where i was going hiking. However the officer that processed me was very thorough and noticed the temporary Canadian Visa as well as my existing TWP so he asked me was I going to try and land on the way back and I couldnt really lie so I said yes. I then had to go the process of getting refused entry to the US.

On the Canadian side I was even less successful. I mentioned that I still live in Montreal which was a big mistake. The Canadian Immigration Officer asked me for proof of my Ontario address which I wasn't able to provide so the officer refused to land me and I left the office with the tail between my legs, angry at my own stupidity and the lack of compromise or indeed any help from the immigration officer.

Not sure what I can do now, I leave to go home on Monday and Im unsure as to whether to try again on Saturday at a different border.

Has anyone been asked for proof of address before??

cityhog

I really don't know what went on, but it sounds a little strange. You might have looked a little suspicious with hiking gear on, more so if you're from a Muslim country and don't have a current address. I heard they can deny entry to Canada for a variety of reasons, so it's not surprising for them to refuse to land you.

Zoe Bell

If you could clarify a coupleof points it might help

1) what exactly did the immigration officer say to you when they refused to land you ?

2) on what status did they admit you to Canada ? Visito maybe if they didn't admit you as pr?

I have to say this sounds very odd. As a pr you are entitled to settle anywhere ( as long as you didn't go down the csq route) so the address is a bit of a non issue

You are aware that flagpolling doesn't count as a refusal into the USA ? So again trying to avoid a refusal is not an issue either

devilabit

They said that I need proof of address in Ontario which I couldnt provide as I still live in Montreal. They said a friends address is not good enough.

Thats a good question, the Immigration Officer said "next" and that was
it. I guess since I still have a TWP I was admitted on that.


AFAIK flagpoling does go down as a refusal and the next time I am asked "Have I ever been refused entry to the US" I will have to answer yes as they have a record of this. Them seem to be rather strict at Cornwall, there was another Canadian guy who had been crossing the border for 9 years and today they decided to grill him

Zoe Bell

You could always land " inland " .
I believe there is an option to do that now if you are on a two

a forum search should help find others who have done that


I would also be tempted to complain , they had no right to refuse you on anaddress issue

I think there is a wiki link as well about flagpolling , some tips on what to say/ do etc.

But I can't see anything from what you have said that means they should have refused you....... Very odd

AmyDavid

This all sounds a little odd - why dress up like your going hiking if you just want to activate your PR? Also, why such worry about being refused entry into America - unless you are wanting to move there in the future and you think this will go against you?

Just go to the border, dressed normally, take your paperwork with you, tell them you want to land and you should be fine. If they refuse you this time, ask to speak to a supervisor and find out on what grounds you are being refused.

devilabit

The impression I got is that they are trying to stop all the people who come from Quebec, land in Ontario and then head straight back to Quebec without a valid CSQ.

cityhog

I called the CIC call center and asked for an appointment for landing at the local CIC office, and I was told I'll have to wait for at least a month.

devilabit

After reading lots of posts about flagpolling and the fear(justified or otherwise) of being refused entry to the US it seemed like the general consensus was to come up with an excuse for entering the US (shopping, hiking etc) and then returning to Canada to land.

cityhog

Where does this fear come from? If you're from a visa waiver country, there's no reason to fear.

AmyDavid

But surely just saying "Hi, I want to go into America for the day shopping and when I come back I would like to activate my PR" would be better than making up a fib. Those officers are made to sniff out fibs..

I hope you manage to get everything sorted before you leave Canada

Zoe Bell

I'm confused as to how they can be trying to stop people doing something you are legally entitled to do

cityhog

I don't think it's the people at the POE but he has some issue or problem that's troubling him.

devilabit

I really think the issue is that when I was asked to provide an address in Ontario, i hummed and hawed and said that I lived in Montreal.

I think that if I go back to a different border in Ontario, this time officially flagpolling and not mention anything about Quebec/Montreal it should work out ok. I dont want to return to Ireland without completing the PR process especially after all the time and cost.

cityhog

All right. Good luck. Don't put on hiking gear this time!