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Canadian ETA

Old 13th Nov 2016, 13:11
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Canadian ETA

My source in T5 tells me that the Canadian ETA introduced this week is causing a lot of problems. A lot of people who seemingly received their ETA are turning up for check-in and being denied boarding because 'computer says no'.

It seems that in all the cases the problem can be traced back to something incorrect on the application. However, the problem is their ETA applications are 'provisionally accepted' online and only when their passport is swiped at check-in does it become apparent that there was a problem.

An example - UK passenger entered 'subject' instead of 'citizen'. Computer said no. Another one - EU passenger entered only 2 digits of passport number into application, which was seemingly accepted until passport swipe at check-in.

If going to Canada be warned and take great care with your ETA. Check your ETA has been 'confirmed' before travelling. And be patient with your airline as this is a problem of Canada's making, not the airlines.
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Old 13th Nov 2016, 15:38
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The Canadian Government has a long history of IT screwups. (Such as their immigration website crashing on day after Trump.)

Also Dual Canadian and other citizens MUST use their Canadian passport if they are travelling to Canada - they CANNOT travel on the other country's passport. If they don't have a Canadian passport they are screwed.

Oh, and travel via land or sea is exempt from this ETA nonsense. Fly to Seattle/Boston and take the bus/train.
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Old 13th Nov 2016, 18:00
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The two examples in the OP are not due to any fault of the Canadian Governments IT department, they are user error. Why say you're a subject when you're a citizen, only very old passports or possibly still some valid overseas territory passports state "British Subject" in the citizenship area. Selecting that when you're a citizen is an error in my book.

The EU passport holder who only put 2 of their passport digits in...why would that be accepted? How is that the Canadians fault?

If your applications says it's Provisionally Accepted then you would surely have the sense to check again closer to travel time and if it's still only provisional then you'd maybe get in touch with someone at ETA to see what's going on? I'd never read "Provisional" and think "I'm ok to go then".

The suggestion to fly via SEA/BOS is also going to require an ESTA, which is just as likely to give a traveler into bother as I lost count of the times when I was dealing with USA bound passengers, that they had filled out an ESTA incorrectly, they ignored the fact it had been denied, didn't realise they needed one or a perfectly good ESTA application was nowhere to be found on the check in system, so a lengthy call to get a manual override was on the cards. This is still something I hear of today, nearly 10 years on from ESTA introduction.

Exactly the same story with the Aussie ETA as well.
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Old 13th Nov 2016, 18:12
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Originally Posted by edi_local
The EU passport holder who only put 2 of their passport digits in...why would that be accepted? How is that the Canadians fault?
But it was accepted, that's the point.

The expression you're looking for is "garbage in, garbage out".

Any IT system that doesn't do basic sanity checks on user inputs (what country issues passports with 2-digit numbers?) isn't fit for purpose.
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Old 13th Nov 2016, 18:44
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Sorry Dave, you usually impress me with your knowledge but, this time, I must disagree.

Does Canada, or anywhere else for that matter, really need people who are that thick?
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Old 14th Nov 2016, 04:06
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Also Dual Canadian and other citizens MUST use their Canadian passport if they are travelling to Canada - they CANNOT travel on the other country's passport. If they don't have a Canadian passport they are screwed.
Not in my experience, ExXB. I've used my US passport in and out of Canada for 12 years with nary a hitch. And it's not like they don't know, as I had a Canadian passport for 40 years before that.
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Old 14th Nov 2016, 05:26
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Obgraham,
I've seen an email from the Canadian Embassy in Berne that says what I said.
Starting on November 10, 2016, Canadian citizens, including dual citizens, will need a valid Canadian passport to fly to or transit through Canada.

In order to facilitate the travel of dual Canadian citizens who do not currently have a valid Canadian passport, a short-term measure is available to dual Canadian citizens whose second citizenship is from a visa-exempt country. These dual citizens can apply for a special authorization that will let them board their flight to Canada using their valid non-Canadian passport.

This short-term measure, which will be available until January 31, 2017, is open to dual citizens who have an imminent flight to Canada (leaving in less than ten days) and whose Canadian citizenship can be verified by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). If approved, the authorization will be valid for four days from the date of travel indicated in the application. Those not eligible for the authorization must contact the nearest Government of Canada office abroad to obtain the appropriate travel document.
It is related to ETA so perhaps it doesn't apply to land crossings - but you would be advised to check.

The IT screwup, as I see it, is that pax were told they were approved (provisionally or not) when they hadn't.
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Old 14th Nov 2016, 06:33
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Originally Posted by ExXB
The IT screwup, as I see it, is that pax were told they were approved (provisionally or not) when they hadn't.
Exactly.

If the system is capable of validating user inputs - which it clearly is:

Originally Posted by oggers
being denied boarding because 'computer says no'
then that should be done at the point where the information is first entered and the user is in a position to do something about it, not when they roll up at check-in.

It's not rocket science.
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Old 14th Nov 2016, 14:28
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edi local,

The two examples in the OP are not due to any fault of the Canadian Governments IT department, they are user error.
I didn't start this as a rant against the Canadian Government - it is meant to be a heads up. Yes it is user error but actually you only know that because I explained it in my OP!

However, it doesn't sound like a very clever system. The concept was to make things easier, right now they have chaos. It's not like the people travelling to Canada are suddenly much thicker than last week.

Dave,

then that should be done at the point where the information is first entered and the user is in a position to do something about it, not when they roll up at check-in.
Yes that is the point.
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Old 14th Nov 2016, 23:31
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ExXB:
Interesting new scheme, which I had not kept up on. It seems there is an exception for those dual citizens using a US passport. But the wording is so vague that I'm sure there will be screw-ups.

From Gouvernement du Canada website:
American citizens, including American-Canadian citizens, must carry proper identification and meet the basic requirements to enter Canada. You do not need a Canadian passport, a Canadian visa or an eTA to enter Canada if you are travelling with a valid U.S. passport.
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Old 15th Nov 2016, 18:33
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It seems there is an exception for those dual citizens using a US passport.
I think it's an exception for anyone using a US passport, just as Canadians don't need ESTA to enter the US. Canadian Citizens can't do the ETA thing, so they can't use a passport that needs one in order to enter Canada.
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Old 17th Nov 2016, 11:47
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Originally Posted by ExXB
The Canadian Government has a long history of IT screwups. (Such as their immigration website crashing on day after Trump.)
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/18/wo...rkers-pay.html
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