NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. — U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer was in Niagara Falls Tuesday calling on the Canadian government to crack down on 'flagpoling'.
According to Schumer's office, 'flagpoling' is a "practice of Canadians briefly exiting and reentering Canada to renew visas and work permits to skip bureaucratic paperwork processing delays.
Schumer says these instances have been increasing as of late in Western New York, and according to bridge officials, causing back ups at our borders, especially at the Peach Bridge in Buffalo and Rainbow Bridge in Niagara Falls.
"Every year, families look forward to visiting beautiful Niagara Falls and rely on a smooth trip between Canada & the U.S., but this loophole is causing unnecessary delays at Rainbow Bridge, Peace Bridge and others crossings across NY. This practice is holding up travelers, impeding traffic flow, hindering trade, and causing increased wait times to make the short trip to Canada from Buffalo. This is not only frustrating for visitors, but our hard-working CBP officers are being spread even thinner because of the unpredictability of this practice,” said Senator Schumer. “That’s why I am calling on the Canadian government to immediately begin work to help fix this problem ahead of the peak of summer tourism season so we can ensure commerce between our nations can continue to thrive. Canada and the US have always been good next-door neighbors, so it’s time to get these wait times back down so tourism and trade can go up.”
Schumer says even though Canadians are here for just a few hours, it still requires an officer to come off the line and process their claim, which could take up to 30 minutes per person, and takes away from US Customs and Border Protection officers from getting people through customs more quickly.
"As we enter the summer travel season, the use of this loophole in Canadian law to circumvent the visa process is causing unnecessary delays at the border," said Congressman Tim Kennedy. "Western New York's border with our Canadian neighbors is one of the busiest trade crossings in North America and a key point of entry for tourism on both sides. I join Senator Schumer in his call to resolve this issue as quickly as possible."
“The Niagara Falls Bridge Commission has grown increasingly concerned over the procedure known as ‘flag poling’ and its direct impact on both US and Canadian Customs staffing capacity, security, and travel delays at our international border crossings. The commission greatly appreciates both Senator Schumer and Congressman Kennedy drawing attention to this issue and working with leaders in both Ottawa and Washington to help bring about rapid procedural change,” said Ken Bieger, Chief Executive Officer of Niagara Falls Bridge Commission.
So far in 2024, nearly 12,000 Canadians engaged in 'flagpoling'. In 2023, nearly 25,000 claims were processed.
The Canadian Border Security Agency did provide this response to wgrz :
"Flagpoling takes up significant resources at the border, diverts Canadian and American officers away from enforcement activities and contributes to significant wait times for cross-border travellers.
Temporary residents do not need to flagpole to obtain immigration services. Most immigration services are available through Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) without having to leave Canada. Temporary residents who need to renew their work or study permit should complete an online application on the IRCC website before their permit expires. They will be granted “maintained status” which lets them continue to work or study until their new application is finalized. If individuals use in-Canada IRCC immigration services:
- they may receive their new work or study permit in the mail at their home address before their current one even expires, or
- they can benefit from “maintained status” that allows them to continue to work or study until their new application is finalized, or
- if they are eligible for IRCC's process for changing employers, they may be approved to begin working for a new employer quickly while their new work permit is still being processed
Flagpoling carries risks, including that an individual who is flagpoling may not be allowed to re-enter Canada, including those who have “maintained status”.
The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) is committed to providing integrated border services that balance the need to support national security and public safety priorities while facilitating the cross-border movement of legitimate trade and travellers. The CBSA works with IRCC, as well as foreign and Canadian law enforcement agencies, to screen all visitors, immigrants and refugee claimants to keep Canada safe and secure.
More information can be found here: Travellers - Work permit, study permit and confirmation of permanent residence requests.
Please reach out directly to IRCC for information on immigration programs and services.