Passport stamp for US Citizen entering Canada by land?

[everydaydano]

Hello,

So, I'm a US citizen, and my wife, who is a Canadian citizen, just got a job in Canada. We have been living in the US for the past few years. Our plan is to enter Canada and then I will apply for Permanent Residence (from within Canada) under the Family-Spouse Sponsorship category. My question: on some of the immigration forms, it asks for a photocopy of the passport page which shows the entry stamp into Canada. However, having traveled to Canada many times, I have rarely gotten an actual stamp in my passport. Our plan is to enter Canada separately- my wife, the Canadian, with the truck including all of "her" possessions, and me in a separate vehicle, visiting. This seems to be the path of least resistance at the border, but I'm concerned about having all the documents needed to promptly apply for Canadian permanent residence. If they don't stamp my passport at the border, will I be missing a critical piece of information for the application?
Thanks much!

-Dan

 

[canuck_in_uk]

Hello,

So, I'm a US citizen, and my wife, who is a Canadian citizen, just got a job in Canada. We have been living in the US for the past few years. Our plan is to enter Canada and then I will apply for Permanent Residence (from within Canada) under the Family-Spouse Sponsorship category. My question: on some of the immigration forms, it asks for a photocopy of the passport page which shows the entry stamp into Canada. However, having traveled to Canada many times, I have rarely gotten an actual stamp in my passport. Our plan is to enter Canada separately- my wife, the Canadian, with the truck including all of "her" possessions, and me in a separate vehicle, visiting. This seems to be the path of least resistance at the border, but I'm concerned about having all the documents needed to promptly apply for Canadian permanent residence. If they don't stamp my passport at the border, will I be missing a critical piece of information for the application?
Thanks much!

-Dan

Hi

American passports are rarely stamped at the border. You just need to include a letter of explanation in place of a copy of the stamp; IRCC will have a record of your entry in the system anyways to double-check.

 

[Ceimi]

If you want the entry notes mailed to you, you'll have to submit a form to CBSA online to request a "Travel History" report which lists all the entries you've had to Canada under any and all passports/passport cards. It takes about 30-40 days though from submission of the application to receiving it in the mail.

 

[bafonso]

If you want the entry notes mailed to you, you'll have to submit a form to CBSA online to request a "Travel History" report which lists all the entries you've had to Canada under any and all passports/passport cards. It takes about 30-40 days though from submission of the application to receiving it in the mail.

This is probably a good idea anyway since you will need to fill out a form where they expect you to write down all your travels.. unless you have a way to know these dates exactly you will want to request this anyway. I definitely remember having a hard time pinpointing some days when I traveled by car.. in fact, I'm sure I made some mistakes but since they're likely only off by 1-2 days they did not care.

Btw, it's a good idea to have your wife drive her truck alone.