U.S.-Canada border rules ‘likely to change’ June 22, but no official word yet
Although there has been no official announcement yet, it appears some momentum is building to at least partially reopening the U.S.-Canada border next month.
Citing an unnamed source, the All Point Bulletin newspaper in Point Roberts posted an article on Tuesday, May 25, that the U.S. intends to open its side of the land border without restrictions on Tuesday, June 22. The newspaper said the source told this to Blaine immigration attorney Len Saunders; the newspaper also reported that Saunders confirmed the statement with a separate ranking U.S. Customs Border Protection officer.
While the article isn’t incorrect about possible plans being in the works, it may also be jumping the gun a bit on a decision that may be made, but hasn’t yet, said Laurie Trautman, director of the Border Policy Research Institute at Western Washington University. She said it’s possible the Canadian government could come to the table to negotiate a bilateral approach which could lead to some easing of restrictions.
“I do think that things are likely to change June 22, one way or another, but there is still some uncertainty around that,” Trautman said in an email.
Requests for comment sent to U.S. Customs and Border Protection were referred to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which did not immediately respond Thursday afternoon, May 27.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki was asked about it by a reporter on Air Force One on Thursday, May 27.
“I don’t think a decision has been made, that I’m aware of,” Psaki said.
The All Point Bulletin noted that if only the U.S. side were to reopen, Point Roberts residents would still be unable to get to Whatcom County through the border crossings for non-essential purposes, but would allow Canadians to visit.
The U.S.-Canadian border has been closed to non-essential traffic since March 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic started taking hold across both countries. Last summer a passenger-only ferry was established that would allow Point Roberts residents to travel to Bellingham. In recent weeks the Canadian government indicated that it wanted to increase its vaccination rates before reopening the border.
If the U.S. were to unilaterally open the border to visitors on June 22, it would have a significant impact on Whatcom County. Canadians could then travel here for cross-border shopping, travel to destinations and check on property they might own in places like Point Roberts, Blaine and Birch Bay.
It would also give Canadians a chance to find deals on retail products and gas: In recent weeks the Canadian dollar has strengthened to around 83 cents compared to the U.S. dollar; when the border restrictions were first put in place the loonie was around 70 cents compared to the U.S. dollar.
If the U.S. does reopen the border on June 22, how the Canadian government reacts to this will determine how many visitors Whatcom County might have. Canada currently places a variety of restrictions on people returning to the country, including self-quarantine and proof of a negative test, Trautman said. If it keeps those restrictions in place, border traffic into Whatcom County would remain low.
“I think regardless of whether or not we have a bilateral approach to easing restrictions, things are going to look different for U.S. entry than for entry to Canada,” Trautman said.
This story was originally published May 27, 2021 at 12:07 PM with the headline "U.S.-Canada border rules ‘likely to change’ June 22, but no official word yet."
