UK Visitor ETA

Visitors to the United Kingdom are now required to complete an Electronic Travel Authorisation ETA. An ETA costs £16 and permits multiple journeys to the UK for stays of up to six months at a time over two years or until the holder’s passport expires – whichever is sooner.

Travel Advisories for Travel to the US

Countries that have issued recent travel advisories for travel to the US include: Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, Denmark, Belgium, Finland, France, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Venezuela and China.

Reasons for US Travel Advisories

Detention: Non-US Citizens have been handcuffed and put in detention centers over documentation that is considered inadequate.

Searching Phones: US Citizens born in foreign countries have had their phones searched in an effort to find information on friends and relatives. Also, there are an alarming number of cases where entry is denied based on phone searches that find comments critical of Trump and his administration.

LGBTQ: Transgender travellers have experienced increased scrutiny and have been denied entry for passports from countries that don’t clearly identify gender as male or female.

In the current political climate, it’s a good idea to avoid all travel to the US. There are lots of friendly countries to visit instead.

If You Are Entering the US

If you feel the need to visit the US, bring a burner phone and leave your laptop at home. Don’t enter the US through a land crossing unless you are prepared to be detained without explanation – if it’s a school trip to the US, that’s a terrible idea. Enter instead through an airport in Canada or Mexico where US Immigration and Customs are located on Canadian or Mexican soil. That way if things get weird, you can simply withdraw your application to visit and avoid detention.

Here’s the list of Canadian airports that provide this added security for your entry to the US: Vancouver, Toronto (Pearson and Billy Bishop), Montréal, Winnipeg, Halifax, Québec City, Calgary, Ottawa, Edmonton, and Victoria. 

Here’s the list of Mexican airports that provide this added security for your entry to the US: Mexico City, Cancun, Cozumel, Los Cabos, and Puerto Vallarta.

Canadians are avoiding the U.S. Will its economy suffer?