Mismatched CBSA/I-94 Record to Stamped Record

[screech339]

I ordered myself CBSA travel records to see what is written on my record in comparison to my wife's records. They both matched October 6th on the travel entrance records. So it is obviously both my wife's and my CBSA records are wrong when my wife's has Oct 5th stamped in her passport.

I searched for records of transaction. I had withdrawn money from my Canadian Bank while in US on October 5th but the bank record has October 7th for ATM withdrawal. I assume my bank didn't get the official withdrawal record until Monday October 7th when they reopen. Anyway that didn't help my cause.

Not sure what to do. Here are my options:

Option 1: List October 5th as same day visit.
Option 2: List October 6th as same day visit per CBSA record. (Don't think this is an option - Records don't match and could be accused of misrepresentation)
Option 3: List October 5th as exit date as per stamped date in passport and October 6th as entrance date as per CBSA record. Basically list 1 day outside Canada.

What do you guys thinks?

Screech339

 

[sicko86]

I ordered myself CBSA travel records to see what is written on my record in comparison to my wife's records. They both matched October 6th on the travel entrance records. So it is obviously both my wife's and my CBSA records are wrong when my wife's has Oct 5th stamped in her passport.

I searched for records of transaction. I had withdrawn money from my Canadian Bank while in US on October 5th but the bank record has October 7th for ATM withdrawal. I assume my bank didn't get the official withdrawal record until Monday October 7th when they reopen. Anyway that didn't help my cause.

Not sure what to do. Here are my options:

Option 1: List October 5th as same day visit.
Option 2: List October 6th as same day visit per CBSA record. (Don't think this is an option - Records don't match and could be accused of misrepresentation)
Option 3: List October 5th as exit date as per stamped date in passport and October 6th as entrance date as per CBSA record. Basically list 1 day outside Canada.

What do you guys thinks?

Screech339

If you didn't apply I would suggest claiming a day even though you actually left and came back the same day .. it is just more safe and will save you the headache of explaining it .. it is just a day anyways.

I had similar problem on the US side .. My passport was stamp (a day earlier) than the day I arrived .. when I looked up the I94 online it mentions the actual date while the passport stamp is for the day before .. I just claimed that extra day to avoid headache.

 

[screech339]

If you didn't apply I would suggest claiming a day even though you actually left and came back the same day .. it is just more safe and will save you the headache of explaining it .. it is just a day anyways.

I had similar problem on the US side .. My passport was stamp (a day earlier) than the day I arrived .. when I looked up the I94 online it mentions the actual date while the passport stamp is for the day before .. I just claimed that extra day to avoid headache.

We didn't apply and won't be doing so for a long while yet until 2017. I am just being proactive in maintaining my wife's records so that I won't have to go back hunting down records 3-4 years earlier.

It seems that Option 3 is the best option. As you said, save ourselves the grief and headache it could cause. Again like you said, it is only a day. No big deal as we will apply with a huge buffer zone past the minimum day requirement.

Thanks for your input.

Screech339

 

[keesio]

I wouldn't worry too much one way or another. CIC is most concerned about the number of days outside Canada. When I applied for citizenship, I was off on some of my dates. The reason being that I travel so much that I had stamps on top of stamps and some are hard to read so I guessed on some of them. At the interview, the interviewer read the stamps differently and modified the dates I had in the application. But because I applied with a 2 week buffer over the 1095 days, it didn't matter (she actually said "you were an extra day outside Canada on this trip than what you put down but you applied with extra days so it is fine"). Anyway I had two other dates off, both where she calculated it as my trip being shorter than what I listed so at the end, my net was a +1 anyway.

In short, don't worry about if you are off a day. They won't hammer you for it if the dates are close and if it doesn't impact the number of days in Canada or if you are well over the 1095 days to cover it. So my advice is use the date for the stamps. This is what my interviewer looked at to validate my dates and that is what CIC expects applicants to do. But bring the CBSA record to the interview. You can explain things there (if needed).

 

[eileenf]

Either way it's probably not a huge deal.

BUT If you're positive that you left before midnight on the 5th, then I would personally recommend that you not list the trip in the Residency Calculation (since it's just a day trip).

Mention something in a cover letter. You could say, "While our CBSA report lists our return on Oct. 6, 2012 (or whenever) the passport stamp, our memories and our personal records (if you have any) show that we left on the evening of Oct. 5 around 8pm (or whenever). Since we were travelling with our young children, we needed to get home in time for their bedtime. In the interest of providing as accurate a record as possible, we have not included this absence as an overnight absence, but we have added a cushion of 14 (or whatever) days over the required 1095 days as well.
Thank you and please contact us with any questions or clarifications."

Often applicants want to prioritize consistency over honesty, in order to "avoid trouble" or "avoid delays", etc. This is usually a mistake and adds unnecessary stress and risk to the process. As an applicant, it's not your responsibility to change the facts to make it easier for the CIC to say yes to you. As applicants, we just do not know the system well enough to accurately judge which facts can be massaged in order to "avoid problems." And if the little subtle lie we told comes out somehow, that can backfire by undermining our credibility.

While this would be a really subtle misrepresentation, and not one that the CIC would likely get very worried about, in my estimation it's just better to play it straight. Tell the truth as you know it to be and do not take responsibility for the CBSA's faulty records. It's not your fault that the CBSA misrecorded this, and you shouldn't feel like you need to "fix" their mistake by "fixing" your memory.

It's just safer to keep with the truth and concisely explain it in the cover letter.

My CIC motto: The truth is your refuge.

Don't squander it because the CBSA can't figure out what day it is.

 

[screech339]

I really appreciate everyone's input and thoughts.

How about this? I go with Option 3:

Record exit as October 5th as per stamped date on passport and record entrance into Canada as October 6th. Explain in letter that it was actually same day crossing into US and back on October 5th for cross border shopping purposes. US I-94 and CBSA records show October 6th as same day entrance to each other countries despite US stamped date of October 5th. So we decided to sacrifice 1 day outside of Canada due to lack of other proof besides US stamped passport date.

On a side note: Passport Stamped date listed October 5th and yet no record of October 5th on I-94 online. Because US/Canada share each other entrance records, Canada must have electronically accepted US wrong October 6th entrance date as Canada exit date. It would explain the wrong Canada entrance date on both my wife’s and mine CBSA’s records. I would have honestly expect Canada to have correct actual entrance October 5th date since we entered Canada that day and pass in our passports. I mean what happened to the October 5th record coming back into Canada. I would have expected Canada to be independent in their own data collection and not use US exit's records as Canada's entrance records.

We cannot find records proving we are in the right. We declared our US expenses to Canada Border (over $600) and they let us in without paying duty for excess limit. So again no proof we were back in Canada Oct 5th. This would have been my proof. Bank debit payment on duty expenses.

I can be a stickler for details and accuracy and sometimes too honest. With the option 3 and letter explaining the problem, would allow me to be honest and yet save ourselves the headache.

I know I am making a huge deal out of it, especially over 1 lousy day, just hate deceiving CIC over it.

 

[thecoolguysam]

I have one missing entry for Canada and I contact CBSA ATIP division and here was the reply:

We process thousands of requests for travel histories and have encountered on numerous occasions travellers whose passports were stamped but the entry was not captured, for various reasons, in the Integrated Customs Enforcement System (ICES) by the Border Services Officer.

I hope this information helps

 

[keesio]

I can be a stickler for details and accuracy and sometimes too honest. With the option 3 and letter explaining the problem, would allow me to be honest and yet save ourselves the headache.

I know I am making a huge deal out of it, especially over 1 lousy day, just hate deceiving CIC over it.

Since I think it is fine either way, do what makes you feel comfortable. You'll sleep better at night

And I know exactly how you feel. During the application process for my wife's sponsorship, I was writing all these explanation note in my wife's application and organizing everything a certain way over and over and my wife was like "don't bother, it is fine the way it is" and I was like "I can't help it! I must do this to be sure!"

 

[eileenf]

How about this? I go with Option 3:

Record exit as October 5th as per stamped date on passport and record entrance into Canada as October 6th. Explain in letter that it was actually same day crossing into US and back on October 5th for cross border shopping purposes.

Screech, seriously, no. You're going for the worst of both worlds here. Lie and explain that you're lying? Because CBSA has bad records and you don't want to "deceive them". Read that over again and think about it again.

Just tell the truth. If it's the truth it's the truth.

Regarding US/Canada border records, do not count on all the information being shared. There is an information sharing agreement, but in practice it is not fully implemented even now. It depends on which border station and when you crossed.

Finally, forgive me, but I'm going to shout here: CIC DOES NOT BELIEVE THAT CBSA RECORDS ARE THE WORD OF GOD. They know that these records are full of holes. As Mr. Cool Sam points out, CBSA knows this too.

Don't lie to fix a problem that's not yours to fix. It's not your responsibility.

 

[screech339]

Screech, seriously, no. You're going for the worst of both worlds here. Lie and explain that you're lying? Because CBSA has bad records and you don't want to "deceive them". Read that over again and think about it again.

Just tell the truth. If it's the truth it's the truth.

Regarding US/Canada border records, do not count on all the information being shared. There is an information sharing agreement, but in practice it is not fully implemented even now. It depends on which border station and when you crossed.

Finally, forgive me, but I'm going to shout here: CIC DOES NOT BELIEVE THAT CBSA RECORDS ARE THE WORD OF GOD. They know that these records are full of holes. As Mr. Cool Sam points out, CBSA knows this too.

Don't lie to fix a problem that's not yours to fix. It's not your responsibility.

Your point made loud and clear.

I guess I stick with Option 1: List October 5th as same day visit and explain in letter that both CBSA / I-94 records list wrong same day dates and leave it as that. The worst that can happen is CIC deducts 1 day despite us being honest about it.

Thanks.

 

[keesio]

Your point made loud and clear.

I guess I stick with Option 1: List October 5th as same day visit and explain in letter that both CBSA / I-94 records list wrong same day dates and leave it as that. The worst that can happen is CIC deducts 1 day despite us being honest about it.

Thanks.

That will be fine.

Do you need to submit CBSA records these days? When I applied last year, I didn't submit anything like that. Just the print out of the residency calculator and that was it. They only checked my dates at the interview it seems (and I had A LOT of travel)

 

[screech339]

That will be fine.

Do you need to submit CBSA records these days? When I applied last year, I didn't submit anything like that. Just the print out of the residency calculator and that was it. They only checked my dates at the interview it seems (and I had A LOT of travel)

Normally you don't need to. I only ordered CBSA records for my wife's when I stumbled across the error on my wife's I-94 records, when I realized how easy it was to get immediate I-94 records online. Only then I ordered wife's CBSA records to confirm the actual dates. I was thinking, doesn't matter what I-94 says, CBSA record will prove it wrong, after all, they record entry records. When I saw the same error on my wife's CBSA, I then ordered my own records to see what date they recorded me. Once I saw the same error in my records to my wife's both I-94 and CBSA's records, it snowballed from there.

 

[arambi]

Here is the key... I quote "It's easier to understand the stamped date being wrong (someone didn't change the date) than both the CBSA & CBP records being wrong".
Since it was a same day trip, you are NOT required to mention it on the residency calculator (but you can prepare and be ready to explain if asked)
If you want to report it on the residency calculator, Just go with the matching CBSA & CBP records... You can then explain October 5 during interview if asked... Just my 2 cents-