ArriveCAN customs and immigration feature

Advance CBSA Declaration: Submit your customs and immigration declaration

Preparing your customs and immigration declaration for the CBSA in advance will expedite your arrival experience at our busiest airports.

Early usage data shows that it is 30% faster at the kiosk when travellers use the Advance CBSA Declaration feature to declare in advance instead of declaring upon arrival.

Travellers who submit their customs and declaration information in advance can take advantage of Advance CBSA Declaration express lanes at the airport when they arrive in Canada, where available.

On this page

Participating airports

  • Vancouver international airport (YVR)
  • Toronto Pearson international airport (YYZ) (Terminals 1 and 3)
  • Montreal-Trudeau international airport (YUL)
  • Winnipeg Richardson International Airport (YWG)
  • Halifax Stanfield International Airport (YHZ)
  • Québec City Jean Lesage International Airport (YQB)
  • Calgary International Airport (YYC)
  • Ottawa International Airport (YOW)
  • Edmonton International Airport (YEG)
  • Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport (YTZ)

Submitting your declaration

Sign in to the ArriveCAN app and follow the prompts to begin.

To submit an Advance CBSA Declaration for yourself or your group before your trip, you must:

  • confirm your travel document information (passport or Canadian permanent resident card)
  • answer the customs and immigration questions truthfully
  • send the declaration within 72 hours of arriving in Canada

When you have completed all fields in the app, a confirmation screen will appear acknowledging that you successfully submitted your declaration. You will also receive an email with this confirmation, inlcuding a reference number.

Your declaration can be submitted up to 72 hours before your arrival into Canada. Should something change with your information, you can always update things when you get to the airport kiosk or eGate. If you do not certify your declaration within the alotted time, it will expire and you will need to submit a new declaration.

Clearing customs at the airport

When your flight lands:

  • scan your travel document(s) at the airport kiosk or eGate where available
    • a maximum of 5 travellers can use one kiosk at a time
    • solo travellers 16 years of age or above can use eGates
  • review and edit your declaration at the kiosk or eGate (if required)
  • submit your final declaration to the CBSA
  • take the kiosk or eGate receipt to a border services officer for further processing

More information

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