Greetings to peeps who have already received their Confirmation for Permanent Residence (CPR) and are about to finish the landing process and activate their documents!
I'm writing this post to describe my personal activation/landing experience (from March 30 to April 4, 2014) and also to tell everyone that's planning to activate their CPR at the Peace Bridge by doing a u-turn that there's a NEW RULE and simply doing a u-turn would mean you won't get your documents activated. So I hope this article can help you understand the steps that you need to take to easily get your doc activated without wasting time, money, gas and energy.
Two of my friends had recently (December 2013) became permanent residents and they suggested that I do a u-turn on the Peace Bridge and the documents will be activated at the Immigration Office. Fast and simple! So here I am, driving down to the Bridge all the way from downtown Toronto on Sunday March 30, 2014, and I was able to do a u-turn as my friends suggested. However, the immigration officer didn't look at my documents whatsoever but gave me a piece of paper instead with CIC's website and number and said this would have to be done at a local office somewhere in Etobicoke. I was quite perplexed as to why I had to do that but since that was what I was told, I had no choice but to leave. I, the next morning, called the CIC call centre and the agent said that was absolutely NOT the case and my documents should NOT be activated at a local office but at the immigration office. And if I want to book an appointment with a local office, it'll take at least two months for them to get back to me with a time. Thinking back, the Immigration Officer at the border either was not doing his job, or he simply wasn't familiar with the services they provide at the office. So I decided to drive down there again.
Today, on April 4, 2014, I drove down to the Bridge once again to have my documents activated. Did the same thing, a u-turn, went into the immigration office and was told the same thing. I said my friends were able to activate their documents on the spot so how come mine cannot be done? I asked if this was something new and the officer said yes that this is a new rule. (Note that he only told me this was a new rule because I asked.) He said I didn't go to another country meaning I didn't leave the country and then come back so it doesn't count as landing/seeking entry. I said "so you're saying I need to go to the US and then come back, correct?" He said yes with a very strong and negative attitude. Since I hold a mainland Chinese passport which doesn't allow me to go into the US without an entry VISA, I presumed this would mean I have to get a US VISA first and then cross the US border. With a million question marks in my head once again, I decided to call the call centre again to confirm. The call centre agent again gave me the same answer: this is NOT a new procedure and I should still be able to activate my doc there. I said you guys are telling me completely different things and all I wanted to find out is how I can get my doc activated. I then explained to the agent I was told to go to the US but don't have a VISA. The agent said I didn't really go INTO the US. All I need is go there and the officers over there will guide me through the process and I definitely don't need a VISA since I won't be entering the country at all. Finally, this thing started to make a tiny bit of sense to me. So I drove over to the other side of the Bridge where the US border is. The immigration officers were surprisingly nice and helpful and the process only took about 10 mins and I was ready to drive back to the Canadian border with a piece of required info needed for activation. I came back to the Canadian border and the officer finally started to process my documents. However, the immigration officer was extremely rude and the language he used was simply disrespectful. I didn't want any trouble so I kept quiet the whole time.
I now have my documents signed and activated and my PR card will be mailed to me in 2 months. But thinking of how much time, money and energy I had to spend on car rental and everything else, I am simply unimpressed and this whole process was insanely stressful and intimidating. If the Immigration Office had told me the first time I was there that I had the option to drive over to the US border and then come back, everything would've been done easy peasy. But in reality, I had to visit the same place 3 times and go through a ridiculous amount of trouble to find out the right answer myself.
Anyway, I hope this article is helpful to people who are planning on landing at the peace bridge by doing a u-turn. It's indeed an easy process but I had to figure it out the hard way. Good thing you won't have to go through the same thing. Simply have your docs ready, drive to the US border over on the other side of the Peace Bridge. The officers will make you drive into the immigration office and give you a piece of paper. Then you come back to the Canadian border with the piece of paper and the Canadian officers will sign the paper then you're done. It's that easy.
Good luck friends and feel free to share your own landing experience!
Best,
Jay
I'm writing this post to describe my personal activation/landing experience (from March 30 to April 4, 2014) and also to tell everyone that's planning to activate their CPR at the Peace Bridge by doing a u-turn that there's a NEW RULE and simply doing a u-turn would mean you won't get your documents activated. So I hope this article can help you understand the steps that you need to take to easily get your doc activated without wasting time, money, gas and energy.
Two of my friends had recently (December 2013) became permanent residents and they suggested that I do a u-turn on the Peace Bridge and the documents will be activated at the Immigration Office. Fast and simple! So here I am, driving down to the Bridge all the way from downtown Toronto on Sunday March 30, 2014, and I was able to do a u-turn as my friends suggested. However, the immigration officer didn't look at my documents whatsoever but gave me a piece of paper instead with CIC's website and number and said this would have to be done at a local office somewhere in Etobicoke. I was quite perplexed as to why I had to do that but since that was what I was told, I had no choice but to leave. I, the next morning, called the CIC call centre and the agent said that was absolutely NOT the case and my documents should NOT be activated at a local office but at the immigration office. And if I want to book an appointment with a local office, it'll take at least two months for them to get back to me with a time. Thinking back, the Immigration Officer at the border either was not doing his job, or he simply wasn't familiar with the services they provide at the office. So I decided to drive down there again.
Today, on April 4, 2014, I drove down to the Bridge once again to have my documents activated. Did the same thing, a u-turn, went into the immigration office and was told the same thing. I said my friends were able to activate their documents on the spot so how come mine cannot be done? I asked if this was something new and the officer said yes that this is a new rule. (Note that he only told me this was a new rule because I asked.) He said I didn't go to another country meaning I didn't leave the country and then come back so it doesn't count as landing/seeking entry. I said "so you're saying I need to go to the US and then come back, correct?" He said yes with a very strong and negative attitude. Since I hold a mainland Chinese passport which doesn't allow me to go into the US without an entry VISA, I presumed this would mean I have to get a US VISA first and then cross the US border. With a million question marks in my head once again, I decided to call the call centre again to confirm. The call centre agent again gave me the same answer: this is NOT a new procedure and I should still be able to activate my doc there. I said you guys are telling me completely different things and all I wanted to find out is how I can get my doc activated. I then explained to the agent I was told to go to the US but don't have a VISA. The agent said I didn't really go INTO the US. All I need is go there and the officers over there will guide me through the process and I definitely don't need a VISA since I won't be entering the country at all. Finally, this thing started to make a tiny bit of sense to me. So I drove over to the other side of the Bridge where the US border is. The immigration officers were surprisingly nice and helpful and the process only took about 10 mins and I was ready to drive back to the Canadian border with a piece of required info needed for activation. I came back to the Canadian border and the officer finally started to process my documents. However, the immigration officer was extremely rude and the language he used was simply disrespectful. I didn't want any trouble so I kept quiet the whole time.
I now have my documents signed and activated and my PR card will be mailed to me in 2 months. But thinking of how much time, money and energy I had to spend on car rental and everything else, I am simply unimpressed and this whole process was insanely stressful and intimidating. If the Immigration Office had told me the first time I was there that I had the option to drive over to the US border and then come back, everything would've been done easy peasy. But in reality, I had to visit the same place 3 times and go through a ridiculous amount of trouble to find out the right answer myself.
Anyway, I hope this article is helpful to people who are planning on landing at the peace bridge by doing a u-turn. It's indeed an easy process but I had to figure it out the hard way. Good thing you won't have to go through the same thing. Simply have your docs ready, drive to the US border over on the other side of the Peace Bridge. The officers will make you drive into the immigration office and give you a piece of paper. Then you come back to the Canadian border with the piece of paper and the Canadian officers will sign the paper then you're done. It's that easy.
Good luck friends and feel free to share your own landing experience!
Best,
Jay
