Tickets will be reviewed after ‘regrettable’ border confusion, CBSA says

A communication breakdown is being blamed after ‘a few dozen’ people affected by floods B.C. were handed hefty fines after crossing the U.S. border to get gas and essential goods without a negative COVID-19 test.

They did so under the guidance of several authorities, including Federal Minister of Emergency Preparedness Bill Blair in a CityNews interview over the weekend.

That direction was supported by the Canadian Border Service Agency (CBSA) itself, which announced on Sunday through a tweet that an exemption was being put in place due to the catastrophic floods and the impacts on the supply chains. The exemption allows travel to the U.S. for essential reasons such as gas and food, and a return to Canada without the need for a PCR (molecular) COVID-19 test.

By Monday, several had found themselves being told they needed to get an expensive test before being allowed home. Others were fined. 

It’s a day of confusion at the Canada-U.S. border. Multiple @CityNewsVAN listeners report being allowed down for gas, only to be told PCR test IS REQUIRED. This is happening on such a scale, border agents have set up preliminary check points to determine whether trips essential. pic.twitter.com/GXJYs6fkrc

— Martin MacMahon (@martinmacmahon) November 22, 2021

CBSA Vice President Denis Vinette says those tickets – some as large as $5,700 – will be “reviewed” by the Public Agency of Canada and called the confusion “regrettable.”

“Unfortunately we did not necessarily have the right understanding on our frontlines for officers to apply a different, if you will, criteria when assessing returning individuals. So CBSA officers were referring individuals who had been down and returned…to our public health colleagues and subsequently some of them received fines,” Vinette said Tuesday morning.

He says when it came to their attention that the direction by federal and provincial ministers wasn’t being applied at the border checks, they ‘course corrected.’

“We’ve been able to correct what transpired and what we saw immediately and checking in with our regional operations this morning it is functioning very well and we’ve addressed what transpired yesterday,” he said.

“It’s regrettable that the transition period that led to the referrals and the fines led to increased stress on them,” he said to those flood-affected British Columbians who have been made more anxious.

He says many border agents have been personally impacted by the floods, and the Abbotsford-Huntingdon crossing in the Sumas area was ordered to evacuate.

Vinette says communication on the ever-changing situation has been difficult to ensure it reaches everyone.

“Every time there’s been a transition and a change in posture including [Order in Councils], we’ve always kind of noticed there’s been periods where getting the information and briefings and direction to all of our staff has been challenging. Especially during the pandemic,” he admits.

A spokesperson for the union which represents border agents says the officers were not “misinformed.”

“The directive originally stated that the testing exemption was for Canadian residents who were unable to access or acquire essential goods or services due to geographical constraints. The revised directive, communicated after 6 p.m. last night, removed the geographical constraint element, meaning that border officers are no longer required to check if returning Canadian residents fit that criterion or not,” Pierre St-Jacques with the Customs and Immigration Union said Tuesday morning.

Given the situation in BC, travellers and essential workers who must travel to or through the USA for essential reasons (food, fuel, supply chains) are exempt from testing and quarantine requirements. These exemptions do not apply to non-essential travel. pic.twitter.com/U1lELIJQE7

— Canada Border Services Agency (@CanBorder) November 21, 2021

Travelling south still restricted under most circumstances

He notes there is not an open border, and the reason to cross must be flood-related. There will be no review for those who took a trip for discretionary reasons such as a pleasure trip and wanted to return home without following health guidelines.

“We expect these to be short trips. You’re going in for gas, for fuel, for groceries, diapers, pharmaceuticals, and you’re returning to Canada. It’s not about going to a restaurant, seeing friends, and doing some shopping. It’s really focused about the necessities of life. ”

For those who do need to cross the border for gas or goods, they are told to be prepared by having their passport and their proof-of-vaccination with them.

They must also have the ArriveCan app, there are no exceptions. You can do so here.

Vinette also suggests the way you speak with the border agent is important. Be sure to outline the nature of your trip and why it is essential, and be able to show proof through receipts showing gas or goods purchased.

The confusion comes a week ahead of the relaxing of some border measures for short trips.

Starting Nov. 30, fully-vaccinated travellers can enter Canada without the need for a PCR test as long as their trip was less than three days, or 72 hours. He says the agents are already ready for those changes, and Canadians should be able to benefit from a more open border at that time.

With files from Martin MacMahon and Monika Gul