Latest news with #RemoteAreaBorderCrossing
Yahoo
21-02-2025
- Yahoo
Brad Dokken: Canada extends Remote Area Border Crossing permits through 2025, but questions remain
Feb. 21—There was good news (sort of) this week for people who live, work or play in remote areas along the U.S.-Canada border, when the Canada Border Services Agency announced that all Remote Area Border Crossing (RABC) permits issued after Sept. 1, 2023, will now be valid until Dec. 31, 2025. "The CBSA is extending the validity of existing RABC permits while we complete the program review," Luke Reimer, a CBSA spokesperson, said in an email to the Herald. The extension was effective beginning Tuesday, Feb. 18, Reimer said, and will continue until the end of this year. RABC permits — as they're commonly known — traditionally are good for one year, but as the Grand Forks Herald reported in November, the Canada Border Services Agency on Sept. 25, 2024, paused the processing of new and renewal RABC applications as part of a review and update of its procedures. That left many U.S. residents who rely on the RABC permits in places without a staffed border crossing checkpoint wondering how they could legally enter Canada to fish, camp, boat or snowmobile — to name just a few activities — in areas such as the Canadian waters of lakes and rivers along the Minnesota-Ontario border if their permits had expired or they needed to apply for one. This week's extension to existing RABC permits eliminates those concerns, at least for now. "New permit applications are still being accepted, but will only be processed once the review of the program has been completed," Reimer said. "More information will be shared when available." According to the CBSA website, five remote areas are covered by the RABC program: the Pigeon River in northeast Minnesota through to — and including — Lake of the Woods, the Canadian shore of Lake Superior, Cockburn Island (on Lake Huron), Sault Ste. Marie (upper lock system) and the Northwest Angle area. Travelers wishing to enter Canada without a valid RABC permit, or hold permits but are outside of one of the program's five designated areas, must report in person to the CBSA at an open port of entry, Reimer said. Options in that situation are limited and include Ontario highway border crossings at Pigeon River, Fort Frances and Rainy River. There are "special procedures" in place for the Northwest Angle, which is not accessible by land from the rest of the U.S., Reimer said. Bordered on three sides by Canada, the Angle is only accessible by road by driving through about 40 miles of Manitoba. Before Tuesday's CBSA action, Angle residents and visitors with expired RABC permits had to call the CBSA Telephone Reporting Center at (888) 226-7277 — CANPASS — to enter Canada. That remains an option for anyone at the Angle who doesn't have an RABC, but the wait time to speak with a CBSA officer can range from a few minutes to an hour or more. The last time I called the CANPASS number from Youngs Bay on the Northwest Angle mainland, I was on hold for 47 minutes before I could talk to a CBSA officer, who cleared me to travel through Manitoba so I could get back home. Anyone needing to call the CANPASS number from the Angle can use a personal cellphone or visit an Outlying Area Report Station (OARS) phone at Jim's Corner, Carlson's Landing or Youngs Bay on the Northwest Angle mainland, Reimer said. Still to be determined, of course, is when the RABC program will be back online or if a new program will be rolled out to take its place. Here's an excerpt from an email the CBSA sent to a permit holder on the Northwest Angle: "The CBSA is continuing to review the RABC program against service needs and evolving trends, while ensuring the safety, security and prosperity of Canada in order to ensure the program reflects member needs." In other words, stay tuned.
CBC
19-02-2025
- Business
- CBC
Some Remote Area Border Crossing permits extended through 2025
After nearly three months of uncertainty, those with special permits to cross freely over select remote parts of the Canada-U.S. got a temporary reprieve. Some Remote Area Border Crossing (RABC) permits will remain valid until the end of 2025, said Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) in an email to CBC Tuesday. The program abruptly paused processing new and renewal applications in December 2024 while CBSA reviewed and updated its procedures. As of Tuesday, all permits issued after September 1, 2023 will be valid until December 31, 2025, said the email. Some say they're happy the program has been extended, which allows for freer movement over the border and subsequent economic boosts to local businesses on both sides. Others say they worry a porous border provides little benefits to Canadians while increasing risks of crime and straining resources. "This is going to be really good news for those that already have an existing permit, not such great news for those that don't have it," said Tessier. Extending existing permits, which usually expire after one year, will allow recreational trail users easier cross-border travel, said Adrian Tessier, president of Thunder Bay Adventure Trails Snowmobile Club. The club has started grooming their trail that connects to Minnesota at Gunflint Lake in anticipation of Canadian and American snowmobilers being able to cross freely again, he said. As crossing these parts of the border becomes easier, he thinks local businesses will see an economic boost from the increased snowmobiler traffic. "They buy everything on the trail– food, lodging, fuel, repairs. They virtually carry nothing with them but clothes and a credit card," he said. Not everyone is happy to see the RABC extended. Many people who live and run businesses near the border would like to see the RABC cancelled entirely, said Scott Hamilton, a fishing guide who owns Jackfish Hammy's Guide Service in Rainy Lake, Ont. Hamilton said the negative consequences of allowing some to cross the border freely far outweigh the benefits. He said he thinks people coming into Canada should be required to enter at a regular, staffed border checkpoint for safety purposes. "Running over just to go for hamburgers and beer on your snowmobile is not something that we think is as important as having people running in and out of our country that aren't checking in," he said. Hamilton said he was also concerned that allowing Americans free passage into remote parts of Canada was impacting the health of local economies and ecosystems on the Canadian side. In the summer, Hamilton said the lakes he guides on are often packed with American boats full of tourists, which Canadian operators have to compete against for revenue, fish and space. "You could stay on the Minnesota side and fish on the border waters, the Lake of the Woods and Rainy Lake, and not spend a dime in Canada other than a fishing license," he said. While he said he loves to see Americans coming to fish in Ontario, Hamilton said it would be more fair if the revenue from tourists enjoying Canadian resources went more toward Canadian businesses. He also said he was concerned about over fishing: while anyone fishing in Ontario is subject to the limits of their license, there is no limit on the amount of licenses distributed in any given area. If put under enough strain, the area's prize populations of walleye, bass, northern pike and muskie could dwindle or disappear.
