Canada Warns Citizens to ‘Expect Scrutiny’ Entering US

Canadian flight bookings to the U.S. were already plummeting. A new warning by its government to citizens visiting their southern neighbors won’t help.

The Canadian government on Friday updated its “United States travel advice” webpage, warning its citizens to “expect scrutiny at ports of entry, including of electronic devices.”

Canada said it “cannot intervene on your behalf if you do not meet entry or exit requirements for the United States,” and that “individual border agents often have significant discretion in making those determinations.”

“These searches are conducted to detect digital contraband, terrorism-related content, and information relevant to visitor admissibility, all of which play a critical role in national security,” CBP Assistant Commissioner Hilton Beckham said in a statement provided to Investopedia. “Allegations that political beliefs trigger inspections or removals are baseless and irresponsible.”

The news comes amid reports of “enhanced vetting” of foreigners trying to enter the U.S., including one in The Sydney Morning Herald of an Australian man who claimed he was detained by U.S. border guards at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport for eight hours, had his iPhone and laptop inspected, and ultimately denied entry for having flown into the country via Hong Kong.

President Trump in January signed an executive order with the title “PROTECTING THE UNITED STATES FROM FOREIGN TERRORISTS AND OTHER NATIONAL SECURITY AND PUBLIC SAFETY THREATS,” with a section headlined “Enhanced Vetting and Screening Across Agencies.”

UPDATE—This story has been updated with a CBP statement.