Canadian government can verify the number of days immigrants and visitors will be able to stay in the country

The federal immigration ministry in Canada has tracked the movements of travelers who have been entering and leaving the country via land ever since February of 2019. The number of days that a foreign national can stay in Canada can prove to be relevant to applications that have to be submitted for work permits, visitor visas, study permits, permanent residence status, and citizenship in Canada.

The IRCC or the Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada have been successful in obtaining traveler information from the CBSA or the Canadian Border Services Agency via the Entry/Exit Program.

When travelers go across the U.S. border from Canada, all their basic information is given to CBSA as an “exit report.” According to the CBSA webpage, IRCC will now be able to access all the traveler information in order to help with the administration and enforcement of citizenship and immigration programs.

Some of the basic information that is collected at the border include:

• Full name
• Nationality or citizenship
• Date of birth
• Gender
• Travel document information.

This Entry/Exit Program might even extend to air travel by June 2020.

The purpose of the Entry/Exit Program is to improve the verification process. IRCC will use the traveler information to verify and confirm residency requirements that are mentioned in applications for citizenship and permanent residence in Canada. They will be able to check if foreign nationals have stayed in Canada longer than they were supposed to.

This information will help in IRCC’s investigations about people’s entitlement to Canadian travel documents. Moreover, investigations into fraud related to citizenship, passport, immigration, and travel documents will become easier. IRCC will be able to check if sponsors and partners stay in Canada for family class programs.