Guidelines for Crossing Into Canada for a Conference

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This is what I learned from being unable to cross the border into Canada to attend an academic conference.  I probably did everything wrong.  You can learn from my mistakes.

The guiding principle is to avoid the appearance of someone who is going to cross into Canada and then become a "problem", someone who intends to stay in Canada and who may need financial assistance or try to get or take a job from a more deserving Canadian citizen.  In order to sniff out these potential miscreants, the border officials have certain things that they look for and I managed to get a perfect score, I think.

To that desired end of convincing the nice people at the border to let you through, the following guidelines are suggested:  1.  Fly directly, do not use the bus from Seattle to Vancouver. I attempted to cross the border via the regular bus shuttle from Seattle because I thought it would allow me to be more flexible and save money.  A false economy, I think.  Had I flown directly to Vancouver, I think I would have appeared to have more financial means and to put more value on my time which is the sort of thing they look for when separating the wheat from the chaff.  2. You should have booked a return ticket and be able to prove it on paper without any hesitation.  I did have a return ticket, but it was from Seattle to Santa Barbara, my plan was to return by bus to Seattle and did not make a reservation since I was not completely sure when I wanted to return. Definitely a mistake. 3. Have documentation for where you plan to stay.  Avoid the appearance of improvisation.  Have your hotel reservation confirmed and carry paper documentation. 4. Carry lots of cash on you. These days most of us rely on getting cash on demand from an ATM.  They want to see plenty of financial responsibility in overt ways.  $1,000 in cash and maybe $1,000 in travellers checks would not be out of place.  5. Dress like you are going to the bank for a loan.  6. Do not carry your dinner and think you are going to take it over the border with you.  7. Have documentation about the conference you are going to attend.  In this case, that would mean a piece of paper that demonstrates that you have preregistered for SIGGRAPH (and spent your $1,000 US in Canada, already).  And, finally, 8. When they ask you if you are employed, do not tell them the truth, that computer animation has failed to provide steady employment for so many people, but say that you are self-employed.

Beyond that, it would have been nice if SIGGRAPH had perhaps a volunteer with a car who could escort people from the border to the conference center, as once you are held back for further review, the logistics of getting into the city are non-trivial even if they do let you through.

To recap, the Canadian border officials want to have some confidence that you are not planning to come to Canada to stay, but will come only briefly, spend money, be respectable and go home.