Expect a Revised ArriveCan App soon

[TeaBag]

We crossed at the land border yesterday and all went well.  We thought when the border opened with the new rules about the PCR not being needed for trips less than 72 hours, the line ups would be horrendous.  Well, we just drove right in to the US border control.  Not a car in sight.  We had to wait a bit coming back but we had our ArriveCan printed out and our vaccination certificates and we were through in less than a minute.  I hope this continues.  We are planning on doing it again today as we have a ton of stuff in our PO Box.

[Fouremco]

12 minutes ago, gnome12 said:

Is it possible to save both NEXUS and Passport to the new app, or do I need separate profiles for each? Even returning internationally with NEXUS they want you to scan your passport.

As far as I can tell, you can only save one. Depending on which airport and what equipment they are using, you no longer need to scan your passport. That said, I always have it close at hand, just in case.

 

This is worth a read: https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/prog/nexus/kiosk-eng.html

[hancogran]

3 minutes ago, TeaBag said:

We crossed at the land border yesterday and all went well.  We thought when the border opened with the new rules about the PCR not being needed for trips less than 72 hours, the line ups would be horrendous.  Well, we just drove right in to the US border control.  Not a car in sight.  We had to wait a bit coming back but we had our ArriveCan printed out and our vaccination certificates and we were through in less than a minute.  I hope this continues.  We are planning on doing it again today as we have a ton of stuff in our PO Box.

That is great!  We're going down Wednesday and staying one night.  (Niagara crossing)  I've been checking the "Border Wait Times" online all week and it hasn't been what I expected either.  I would rather have gone this week but DH figured it would be too busy.  We normally cross at the Whirlpool which is Nexus only but it looks lke the Rainbow Bridge is quieter.  There's been a bit of a wait at the Queenston/Lewiston crossing but that's normal for that bridge-- that's the best area for shopping.  

[AlbertaCruisers]

42 minutes ago, gnome12 said:

Is it possible to save both NEXUS and Passport to the new app, or do I need separate profiles for each? Even returning internationally with NEXUS they want you to scan your passport.

As a note in Aug and Nov, I scanned our passports into the ArriveCan app and then used the Nexus machines and our Nexus cards in Toronto airport with no issue. 
 

I plan to save our passports into the app. 

Edited December 2, 2021 by AlbertaCruisers

[gnome12]

3 hours ago, gnome12 said:

Is it possible to save both NEXUS and Passport to the new app, or do I need separate profiles for each? Even returning internationally with NEXUS they want you to scan your passport.

I'll answer my own question. I now have 2 travellers saved, one with my passport, and one with my NEXUS card. I don't know if that is required, but now I will choose which one to use. (My first trip expected to be a land trip with only NEXUS.)

Edited December 2, 2021 by gnome12

[gubby]

I just read a couple of news articles about ArriveCan and felt my BP rise. Because of our avid cruise and travel addiction, I tend to read all kinds of article, and am pretty well up to date on travel rules. Because I also am a CC member, I check this site several times a day. However, I know there are thousands of Canadian travelers who do not know and/or understand what is needed in order to travel. This is partly due to confusing announcements, constantly changing regulations, lack of media information and also ignorance on the part of those who travel. 

However, when I read about fully vaccinated seniors having to quarantine because they didn't know how to download their proof of vaccine to the ap, even though they had copies of the proof, or were denied time to pull over and fill out the AP, I saw red. At this point, I queried my spouse what he knew about Arrive Can. He said that he assumed it was a paper to be filled out to get into the country. I was unaware that I should have a copy of my ArriveCan ap if it was on my phone either until that information showed up about 90% into the article. We both watch news channels most of the day, and still don't know so much. Our politicians AND the media must start doing a much better job of informing the traveling public what the rules are, and of trying to make these regulations clear and simple to follow. It would also be a good idea if ALL border agents understood that the general public may need some time to fill out forms. We are not trying to break rules. We may not understand them.

All I can think to do is to talk to my MP and also to call the media and try to get them to make some public announcement before the expected Christmas rush. Anyone have other suggestions.

[powderhorn]

This reliance on apps is causing me some concern. Viking uses Verifly, which I downloaded onto our one and only iphone. My wife and I also share the same e-mail. I launched the verifly app and tried to find a place to load my travel companions info....sort of there but not the same navigation as my profile was....went on the phone with verifly and they didn't really answer my question....in the end, they said, don't worry about it....just bring your hard copy and you'll get on board. It's good to see ArriveCan is designed for storing info on families travelling together, but,  having one phone and one e-mail address for 2 travellers....is that going to be a problem for other things...like emailed test results, etc?

[Fouremco]

3 hours ago, gubby said:

I just read a couple of news articles about ArriveCan and felt my BP rise. Because of our avid cruise and travel addiction, I tend to read all kinds of article, and am pretty well up to date on travel rules. Because I also am a CC member, I check this site several times a day. However, I know there are thousands of Canadian travelers who do not know and/or understand what is needed in order to travel. This is partly due to confusing announcements, constantly changing regulations, lack of media information and also ignorance on the part of those who travel. 

However, when I read about fully vaccinated seniors having to quarantine because they didn't know how to download their proof of vaccine to the ap, even though they had copies of the proof, or were denied time to pull over and fill out the AP, I saw red. At this point, I queried my spouse what he knew about Arrive Can. He said that he assumed it was a paper to be filled out to get into the country. I was unaware that I should have a copy of my ArriveCan ap if it was on my phone either until that information showed up about 90% into the article. We both watch news channels most of the day, and still don't know so much. Our politicians AND the media must start doing a much better job of informing the traveling public what the rules are, and of trying to make these regulations clear and simple to follow. It would also be a good idea if ALL border agents understood that the general public may need some time to fill out forms. We are not trying to break rules. We may not understand them.

All I can think to do is to talk to my MP and also to call the media and try to get them to make some public announcement before the expected Christmas rush. Anyone have other suggestions.

You raise a couple of interesting points, one with which I agree and the less so.

 

On the issue of the seniors unable to download their proof of vaccination to the app, that's a sad reflection of society's rush to convert everything and everyone to a digital world, whether or not there's a need. I love the ArriveCAN concept, and I believe that the GOC should promote its use as a primary instrument for entry, but it is ridiculous IMO that it and it alone become a mandatory requirement. There are so many seniors and others who simply don't have smart phones for a start, but we are forcing them to purchase one, and a acquire cellular or wifi service, simply to provide information that could just as easily be shown to airline or CBSA officials using printed documents. And even for those that do own them, many simply don't have the knowledge or understanding required to perform some of the tasks required. Just as NEXUS cards became an option to passports, and quicker entry became a reward for acquiring membership, maybe the ArriveCAN app should have been an option to paper documents and some priority given to those using it.

 

As for public awareness, our daily paper is filled with articles on entry requirements, and our evening TV news has stories every time there are changes made or proposed. And the GOC has news releases all the time that the news media are quick to report. Anyone paying the slightest bit of attention to what is going on in the world would know that there are travel restrictions globally. While they may not have read or seen every last detail, if they are planning a trip outside the country, they have a certain amount of responsibility for acquiring those details. Just as you don't show up at the airport, ticket in hand but no passport to enter some foreign country, you don't travel outside Canada without brushing up on the requirements for re-entry. There's simply no excuse for not knowing, IMO.