Business Travel to the United States

Business Travel to the United States: Summary of Cases Reported by CME Members (as of July 28, 2011)

Case #1 – Getting our staff across the border  A machinery and equipment manufacturer in Ontario reports that movement of business people to the US has been getting progressively worse over the last few years. They have several staff who need to travel to the US every month.  Sales people need to attend meetings and trade shows in the US. They report being frequently hassled at the border, either at the airport or land border.  Technicians need to set up and maintain our highly specialized equipment. Again every border crossing is fraught with problems with technicians sometimes denied entry.  This uncertainty associated with every border crossing is affecting US customers’ trust in their Canadian suppliers. “If our technicians cannot get to the customer in case of emergency, it can lead to our customers having to stop production and lose income.”  What do we need to do to ensure that our sales people and technicians can cross the border without any problems in the future?

Case #2 – Providing free services to customers and implications of being denied entry  Canadian manufacturing executive recently refused entry at Pacific Truck Crossing in Blaine.  Entry refused on the basis that as a “Salesperson” he was not allowed to provide training services to his US client unless under contract to do so.  US customer is installing the equipment they purchased from their Canadian equipment supplier. They’re looking for the Canadian company to supervise and assist with the installation to ensure all goes well. What can the Canadian company do to assist its US client?  When denied entry, the Canadian manufacturing executive was fingerprinted and photographed and his passport number was recorded in the Department of Homeland Security’s database. How will this affect that person’s future ability to travel to the US for business or pleasure?  The Canadian manufacturing executive was told that as a salesperson working for a Canadian company, he could enter the US to sell and represent his firm’s products but that once a sale was made he needs to be under contract with his client to provide training, installation assistance, or any other form of after-sales service even if those services are provided free of charge. Is this correct?

Case #3 – Getting samples across the border and processing orders at trade shows  Head of marketing of a Canadian apparel manufacturer says bringing salespeople’s samples across the border is a recurring problem.  Sometimes we are allowed to bring samples across the border, sometimes not.  Not being able to cross with samples is a major inconvenience that leads to extra costs as samples must be sent ahead by courier to properly clear customs.  Can we receive clarification about crossing the border to attend a tradeshow for the tradeshow period (usually a few days) or even crossing the border for meetings with customers?  Are we also allowed to process orders while at trade shows in the US? Case #4 – L1B Visa and NAFTA  Building products manufacturer in Ontario with US parent.  Needs to send service technicians to the US for warranty service on their products.  Until two years ago, would send technicians to the US with the original paperwork associated with the sale as NAFTA gives Canadians the right to service their products in the US. US immigration officers would give us some grief would let us pass.  Two years ago our technicians were stopped on the US side of the border in Port Huron as they were heading back to Canada. They were detained and interrogated on the basis they had no right to service these products in the US and were told they would be “black listed” if they try to enter the US again. One of our technicians actually tried to cross in Buffalo a few months later and was detained for a significant amount of time before being released and allowed to cross.  We now have L1B visas for our technicians at a cost of $850 per employee plus legal fees and have not had problems since then. However this makes servicing our products in the US more complicated and puts us at a competitive disadvantage. Does this really comply with NAFTA?  Is there a reason why the L1B visa is now good for 2 years where it was previously good for 3 years?  We hear rumours that the L1B visa may be eliminated. Is this true? The inability to service of products would cripple our US business.

Case #5 – Consultants and advisors  We are a Canadian firm (part of a global network) with Canadian employees providing consultancy/advisory services to Canadian companies, many of whom do business in the US.  We often need our employees to attend meetings in the US with our Canadian clients. This sometimes takes place at our Canadian clients’ US operations, sometimes at other locations.  Our employees are not employees of the US business – they are remunerated by the Canadian advisory firm. Our clients are also Canadian, but they usually also have operations or sales offices in the US. This usually creates confusion and uncertainty at US customs and immigration.  What documentation should we bring and what process should we follow to facilitate consultants and business advisors crossing the border into the US?

Case #6 – Differences for permanent residents  Are the procedures any different for Canadian permanent residents that need to go through to travel to the US for business?